A Johto Journey
by Megalink1126
Summary: Join Derek, a brand new Pokemon trainer, as he travels through Johto on his very own Pokemon journey. Discontinued.
1. The Journey Begins

**Hey people! This is my first ever story, so please review!**

Derek was awakened by a large crash downstairs. He scrambled out of bed, and ran into the kitchen, which was filled with a white smoke.

"Sorry!" Derek herd his mom say as she appeared walking out of the smoke. "I was trying to bake you a cake, but something went wrong I guess!"

Derek sighed. In all the confusion, he had completely forgotten that today was his tenth birthday. The day that he had been dreading had finally arrived.

Most kids usually cannot wait for their tenth birthday, for that means that they are finally old enough to start their very own Pokemon journey. But Derek didn't care about Pokemon at all. Sure, they were cool, but when all you heard all day was Pokemon this, Pokemon that, it gets extremely annoying.

"So how does cereal sound for breakfast?" Derek's mom asked.

"That sounds great mom." Derek said with a tiny smile. His mom couldn't cook to save her life, even if she had nine lives.

Derek's mom proceeded back into the kitchen, where the smoke was finally starting to thin and left Derek alone with his thoughts.

"So have you decided what Pokemon you'll choose from Professor Elm yet?"

Derek sighed, "Not yet mom."

"Look," Derek's mom said as she reappeared from the kitchen carrying two bowls with her. "I know that you don't like Pokemon, but you will once you start to get to know them."

Derek and his mom continued eating in silence, when there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it." Derek said as he stood up, leaving his empty bowl behind him. He opened the door, revealing a man wearing a lab coat. "Oh, it's you Prof. Elm."

"Hello Derek." Prof. Elm said as he held out his hand. Derek stared at it until Prof. Elm finally dropped it. "So, are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, I guess." Derek said as he grabbed his bag, and stepped out into a windy morning in New Bark Town.

New Bark Town was a small town, so small that it didn't even have a Pokemon Center. The only thing the town did have was Prof. Elm's lab, and even that was small.

"Come along now!" Prof. Elm said as he walked off to his lab, expecting Derek to follow him. Derek sighed, and slowly followed after Prof. Elm. A few younger kids stared at him in awe as he passed; probably wishing they were old enough to go on their own journey.

Derek was so into his thoughts that he didn't notice that Prof. Elm had stopped until he ran into him. Prof. Elm was staring ahead with a look of shock on his face.

"My lab!" Prof. Elm whispered as he ran into the burning building. Derek could see black smoke rising out of the open windows. Prof. Elm reappeared carrying another man dressed similarly to him. Derek took a step forward to help, but a flicker of movement caught his attention. Derek turned, and saw two people running into the forest.

"Hey!" Derek yelled as he ran after them. The two men were dressed in black, and both had a red "R" painted across their chests. "Stop!" Derek shouted as he quickened his pace.

"Go away kid!" one of the men shouted as he through a red-and-white ball. The ball split open, and a small, purple bat emerged in a flash of light.

"Go Zubat, use supersonic!" the man shouted.

Zubat opened its mouth, and fired off a wave of rings at Derek. The rings struck him, and Derek was forced to stop when his vision started to get blurry.

"Now Zubat, use wing attack!" the man said as Zubat's wings started to glow, and they slammed into Derek, knocking him down.

"No…" Derek said weakly as the two men started to run off again.

"Eevee, use tackle!"

A small, brown-furred Pokemon came running out of the bushes and charged into the stomach of one of the men. He immediately dropped the bag he was carrying, and hundreds of papers flew out, as well as three pokeballs.

"Why you little…Koffing, get her!" the man said as he through another pokeball. A small, ball shaped Pokemon appeared with skull-and-cross-bone markings on its stomach appeared.

"Koffing, use poison gas!"

"Zubat, you use supersonic!"

The force of the two attacks sent Eevee flying back into a tree. Eevee slid to the forest floor, clearly in no condition to battle.

"No, Eevee!" A girl cried as she ran over to her fainted Pokemon.

"This will teach you not to mess with Team Rocket, Koffing, use tackle!"

"Zubat, you use wing attack!"

"No…" Derek said as he picked up the nearest pokeball, and threw it. A small, black-and-yellow pokemon appeared, and landed a few yards away from the girl and her Eevee.

"A Cyndaquil, eh? Alright then, Cyndaquil, use tackle!"

Cyndaquil ran forward, and slammed into Koffing. Koffing bounced off of Cyndaquil's head and into Zubat.

"You again, Koffing use tackle.

Koffing charged into Cyndaquil, causing it to fly through the air. It landed on its back a few feet from Derek.

"Cyndaquil, use ember!"

Cyndaquil rolled over, and the four yellow spots on its back burst into flame. Cyndaquil then opened its mouth, and sent out a barrage of tiny fireballs at Koffing and Zubat. Both of them fainted from the powerful attack, and were immediately called back by their trainers.

"We won't forget this!" one of the men said as he threw a gas bomb on the ground, which released a puff of smoke, allowing them to escape.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked as the girl got up, cradling her Eevee in her arms.

"Yah, I'm alright, but my Eevee isn't. My name's Sara."

"Derek."

"Well, thanks Derek. I better get my Eevee to a Pokemon Center. Bye!"

"Hey, wait" Derek said but Sara was already gone.

"Derek! Where are you?!" Derek herd Prof. Elm call as he walked into the clearing. "There you are!"

"Hey professor." Derek said as he finished packing the papers back into the bag.

"How did you get that?" Prof. Elm asked as he took the heavy bag from Derek.

"Some guys ran off with it, along with three Pokemon. This girl came, and she helped me get rid of them."

"Fascinating, well, we better get back to the lab."

"So have you decided which Pokemon you are going to use?" Prof. Elm asked Derek as he stared at the three Pokemon sitting on the table: Cyndaquil, Chikorita, a green Pokemon with a leaf on its head, and Totodile, a mini blue alligator.

"Definitely!" Derek said with a smile "I choose Cyndaquil."

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said softly as he jumped into Derek's arms.

"Good choice!" Prof. Elm said as he saw the reaction Cyndaquil made. "Here are your pokeballs and pokedex."

"Thanks professor." Derek said smiling, thinking about what the rest of his journey would be like.

**Thanks for reading!**

**I promise I'll have the next part up soon**

**Please review!!!**


	2. Complications

**Okay, so it took me longer than I thought, but here it is chapter two of **_**A Johto Journey. **_**Oh, and I would like to thank Farla for my first ever review.**

**(I forgot this last time but here it is) Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon!**

"Crap!" Derek yelled as he once again cut his shirt on a thorn. All of his previous thoughts of how his journey would be had disappeared, and thoughts of why he hated pokemon came flooding back. Derek glanced down at his belt, where a small, red-and-white ball was clasped.

_Why did I ever pick that ball up?_ Derek thought to himself as he continued to make his way through the dense underbrush. He told himself over and over that he just wanted to get Prof. Elm's papers back, or that he wanted to see the girl again. The truth was that he didn't know why he even bothered to go after them in the first place.

Derek sighed, and then winced as another thorn scraped his ankle.

Derek continued on, and eventually the trees and dense brush started to thin, until he found himself on the edge of a large meadow.

The meadow was filled with flowers of every shade and color. Numerous bug pokemon flew or crawled about, gathering nectar and pollen.

Derek stretched, and lay down on the ground, staring at the clouds drifting by.

_Well,_ Derek thought to himself _this part's not too bad._

"Eevee, use sand-attack!"

A cloud of sand enveloped Derek. He jumped up, trying to clear the sand from his eyes and mouth.

"Sorry!" Sara said as the sand cleared enough for Derek to see. "Hey, you're that boy again."

"My name is Derek." Derek spat as he wiped the last remaining bits of sand out of his eyes.

"Well you don't have to be so rude about it."

"Just go away." Derek said as he turned and stomped off.

"Hey, wait!" Sara yelled as she ran to catch up with him.

"What do you want now?" Derek sighed and reluctantly turned to face her.

"I was thinking that we could have a battle." Sara replied cheerfully.

"What?"

"I said that I thought that we could have a battle."

"No, not that. I was wondering why you would want something like that when you lost so easily to those Team Rocket people, and I beat them."

Sara's eyes darkened, and her smile vanished. "Well, if you think it's going to be so easy to beat me, why won't you battle?"

"Because I hate this stupid journey! I don't even want to be here right now!"

"Then why are you doing this Derek?"

"It's…complicated. Let's just say my mom thought that it would be good for me."

"Well then, eevee, use tackle!"

Eevee ran forward, and slammed into Derek, knocking him down.

"What was that for?!" he gasped.

"I'm going to open your eyes! Eevee, use tail whip!"

"Fine," Derek said as he reached down to grab his pokeball. His had hovered over the small sphere for a split second before he snatched it off his belt, and pressed the tiny, white button in the middle. The pokeball quickly grew ten times its size in his hand.

"Cyndaquil, come out." Derek said as he tossed the ball into the air.

Cyndaquil emerged in a flash of light, just in time to receive eevee's tail whip.

"Cyndaquil, use tackle." Derek said quietly.

"Eevee, you use tackle as well!"

Both pokemon collided, and cyndaquil was sent flying backwards.

"Tail whip lowers a pokemon's defense. Even kindergarteners know that."

"Cyndaquil, use ember." Derek said angrily.

"Eevee, counter it with sand-attack!"

Cyndaquil opened its mouth, and a tiny puff of smoke appeared right before the sand-attack hit.

"What happened?" Derek asked in astonishment as cyndaquil tried to rub the sand out of its eyes.

"Cyndaquil can't use any fire attacks until the fire on their back is ignited. Young cyndaquil like yours often need to practice before they can summon their flames at will. Now, let's finish this eevee! Use tackle!"

Eevee charged at cyndaquil, who was still busy wiping the sand from its eyes to notice. Cyndaquil went flying into Derek, where its flames suddenly erupted from its back.

"Ahhhh!" Derek yelled as he ripped off his burning jacked, and tried to stomp out the flames.

"Eevee put out the flames with sand-attack."

Eevee threw a huge cloud of sand at the burning jacket, hitting Derek in the process.

"I hate pokemon!" Derek yelled as he tried to clear the sand from his eyes.

"I'm really sorry!" Sara cried.

"Come on cyndaquil!" Derek said as he turned to the pokemon. Cyndaquil was slowly backing away from Derek with a sad look on its face.

"I said let's go!" Derek yelled.

Cyndaquil turned, and ran quickly back into the forest.

**Well, what do you think? I just want to make a couple things clear:**

**1. Derek still does not like pokemon, but he likes them slightly more than he used to.**

**2. Derek was frustrated from a long day of hiking in this chapter, so he is a lot more irritable than normal.**

**Please review!!!!!!**


	3. The Past

**Hey people! I want to thank Megaranger23 for his two reviews. Follow his example and REVIEW!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own pokemon, but I wish I did…**

"Cyndaquil!" Derek yelled into the dark debts of the forest. "Cyndaquil!"

"You're never going to find him in the dark." Sara said as she followed behind Derek. Derek responded with a grunt, and continued to yell cyndaquil's name.

"Look," Sara said after a few minutes "it's late, and were never going to find cyndaquil in the dark, so how about we set up camp?"

"Fine," Derek grumbled as he sat down on a nearby log. Sara went about collecting branches and twigs to build a fire. A few minutes later, the fire was going, and Sara set herself down on a stump facing Derek.

"I don't get you." Sara finally said. "You say that you don't like pokemon, but we're out here looking for your cyndaquil."

"I don't like pokemon," Derek said as he stared at the fire "but cyndaquil is my responsibility. I accepted him as my pokemon, and that's all there is to it."

"Oh, grow up! Why can't you admit that you have a bond with cyndaquil? What made you like this?"

"Be quiet." Derek grumbled.

"And that's another thing, why are you being 'forced' into being a trainer. Why is your mom making you do this if you don't want to?"

"I said be quiet!" Derek snarled with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Why won't you open up to me?"

Derek sat still for a very long time watching the flames dance, until he finally said "My dad died because of pokemon."

"What do you mean?"

"My dad was a construction worker. When I was six, he was working on a project when a part of the building exploded, causing it to collapse on itself. My dad was buried inside, and they didn't recover his body until after it was too late. One of the workers that had escaped said that two machoke had gotten into a fight, and one of them was thrown into the electrical wiring. When he had tried to get free, it had done something to the wiring that caused the gas tank to explode. After that, I shunned everyone around me except for my mom. That's why I'm on this journey, because my mom thought that it would help me get closer to people."

"It already has…"

Derek looked up and stared at Sara.

"Well,…" Sara stammered "It's just that you probably wouldn't have told me that story if you hadn't gone on this journey. Oh, and I have some news for you mister. You don't hate pokemon."

"What?!"

"You are confusing your feelings. You said that you shunned everyone from your life, including pokemon. You told yourself over and over again that you didn't like pokemon until you actually started to believe it. I'm not saying that you love them, it's just that you've lied to yourself all these years."

"Wow," Derek said with a small smile on his face "Four years of going to therapy, and that was the best session I ever had."

"Shut up."

"Now then, since I've told you about me, I think it's time to tell me a little about you."

"What?"

"Let's start out with where you're from, shall we?"

"Since when did you become the shrink?"

"Answer the question."

"Fine," Sara said as she sighed "I'm from Vientown, in the Almia region."

"Wait," Derek said surprised "I thought people in Almia didn't capture pokemon, but become rangers instead."

"Well, some people do have pokemon, but for the most part, you're right."

"What are you doing here then?"

"I graduated from the ranger school at the age of seven. By nine, I was a rank five ranger, and was being considered for a spot in the Top Rangers. My partner pokemon was eevee."

"Why did you quit?"

"I never quit. I took a leave of absence from the Union."

"Why?"

"Would you stop saying 'why' all the time? Anyway, I wanted to experience new things. I decided I would try to be a trainer, and challenge the pokemon league to see how far I could get."

"Wow, so that's why you know so much about pokemon. You're like a ranger prodigy."

"But an inexperienced trainer. Eevee is my only pokemon."

The two trainers sat there in silence for a long time, thinking about what the other had said.

"It's getting late." Sara finally said.

"We should get to bed. I want to wake up early to find cyndaquil."

"Goodnight Derek."

"Night Sara."

**Well, what do you think? Derek's finally starting to like pokemon again.**

**Derek: I thought I had just confused my feelings towards them.**

**Me: Hey, what are you doing out of the story?**

**Derek: I got lonely.**

**Me: You're with Sara.**

**Derek: She's sleeping.**

**Me: So are you.**

**Derek: Oh yeah.**

**Me: Please review.**

**Derek: Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.**


	4. A Helping Hand

**Hey people of the world! Please review my story! Nobody reviewed it last time, so I don't have anyone to thank! Oh well…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon!**

"Wake up!" Sara shouted as she rolled Derek and his sleeping bag over.

"What's going on?" Derek yelled as he jumped up, tangling himself up with his sleeping bag, and falling back down again.

"I thought you said you wanted to wake up early?"

"Yeah, but not at the crack of dawn!" Derek said as he managed to untangle himself and stand.

"Sunrise was an hour ago. To me, this is late. Now come on! Are we going to find cyndaquil, or are you going to sleep all day?"

"Fine," Derek said as he packed up his sleeping bag. "Let's go!"

The two trainers spent the rest of the morning searching high and low for Derek's cyndaquil, but to no avail.

"Let's take a quick break for lunch, shall we?" Sara suggested.

"I really want to find cyndaquil so I can apologize."

"Look, I'm really happy that you're finally starting to like pokemon, but we can cover much more ground if we take a break and have something to eat."

"Fine," Derek said, giving up.

After one of the quickest lunch breaks ever recorded, the two trainers were off again, searching for cyndaquil. When they headed deeper into the forest, they started to fell uneasy. For one thing, all the pokemon they encountered were all running in the opposite direction that they were headed.

"I've got a bad felling about this." Sara mumbled to herself as they continued on. "Why are all these pokemon running away?"

Sara's question was answered when a small earthquake shook the ground.

"Let's go!" Sara said as she started to run in the direction the tremor had just come from.

"Where are you going?" Derek yelled, trying to keep up.

"Look, I've experienced enough earthquakes in my life to know the difference between a natural earthquake, a man-made earthquake, and a pokemon-made earthquake."

"There's a difference?"

"Yep, and that was definitely a man-made quake."

The two trainers ran, and before they knew it, they were standing on the edge of a clearing. A large drill was stuck in the ground next to a small, white building. But the thing that Derek and Sara were looking at was the large shelves of large, clear spheres. Inside each sphere was a pokemon, but they were not shrunk as they would have been in a pokeball, but instead they were their normal size.

"There's cyndaquil!" Derek said pointing at one of the spheres.

"Wait," Sara said stopping him. "I think this is what all those pokemon were running from. This is definitely not good."

"But cyndaquil…"

"Right now, pokemon liking Derek is getting on my nerves. Almost to the point of me wishing for the old Derek back."

"Sorry,"

"Not now, someone's coming." Sara grabbed Derek and dragged him back into the cover of the forest. Two men appeared in the clearing, both wearing white pants, and a black shirt with a red "R" on it.

"Hey, it's those guys again!" Derek said a little too loudly.

"Shhhhh!" Sara said pulling him back down. "Do you want them to hear you?"

"Sorry, but what are we going to do?"

"First, stop saying sorry. Second, keep your voice down. And third, I'm going to distract them. You go and rescue cyndaquil."

"What about the other pokemon?"

"Leave that to me. We'll free them after we get cyndaquil back. Now go!"

Sara shoved Derek, and he ran off to the other side of the clearing, catching the attention of Team Rocket.

"Hey, kid!" One of the grunts shouted.

"Get back here!" The second one said.

"Oh no you don't." Sara mumbled to herself as she stepped out into the clearing "Eevee, use sand-attack!"

The brown fox pokemon appeared spraying sand all over the two grunts.

"There are two of them!" The first grunt shouted.

"You take this one, I'll get the boy." The second grunt said as he stepped out of the sand cloud.

"Eevee, use tackle! Don't let him go after Derek!"

Eevee ran up and slammed into the second grunt's chest, making him fall over.

"Fine, you want to do it that way? Gastly, use lick!" The second grunt shouted as a black ball pokemon appeared.

"Grimer, you use pound!" The first grunt said as he stepped out of the sand cloud. A purple glob with eyes appeared as it ran towards eevee.

Meanwhile, Derek had made it to the spheres without incident, and was now trying to break the lock on cyndaquil's cage with a rock.

"Cyndaquil, could you help me out with a tackle?"

Cyndaquil turned away from it's trainer in defiance.

"Look, I'm really sorry cyndaquil. I made a bunch of mistakes, but Sara's helping me too get over my past. Please believe me!"

Cyndaquil turned all the way around and sat with his back facing his trainer.

"Fine, if you won't do this for me, then do it for Sara and the other pokemon trapped here. You're the only one who can help them please cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil sighed, turned, and rammed the door with his head, causing it to break open.

"Alright, let's go help Sara."

"Eevee, no!" Sara yelled as grimer once again struck eevee with his pound attack

"Let's finish this, use lick gastly!" The second grunt said.

"Grimer, use pound." The first grunt added.

The two pokemon charged at the defenseless eevee, who was still trying to stand up.

"Cyndaquil, use tackle!"

Cyndaquil launched itself right at gastly, but he passed right through the ghost pokemon and bounced harmlessly off of grimer.

"Hey, it's that kid again." The first grunt said.

"Both of you, go after that cyndaquil!" The second grunt shouted.

Grimer and gastly both turned and launched their attacks at cyndaquil. Cyndaquil went flying backwards where he came to a rest next to eevee.

"Derek…" Sara whispered

"Yeah, I know. These guys are tough."

"We've got to use ember. It's our most powerful attack."

"But you know cyndaquil has a hard time using it."

"Just leave that to me." Sara said with a smile.

"Fine, cyndaquil, use ember!"

"Eevee, use helping hand!"

Eevee's tail started to glow, and it released multiple yellow orbs that flew to cyndaquil. Cyndaquil absorbed the orbs, and his back instantly ignited. He opened his mouth, and a barrage of fireballs was launched at gastly and grimer. The two pokemon were instantly knocked out by the force of the attack, and sent the grunts scrambling away.

"We won't forget this!" One of the grunts yelled as they disappeared into the forest.

"Come on Derek." Sara said as she watched the two grunts disappear. "Let's go free those pokemon."

**Me: Well, what do you think?**

**Derek: I think that it was about time that I rescued cyndaquil.**

**Me: I wasn't talking to you, and what are you doing here again?**

**Derek: I like it here.**

**Me: Well, too bad. You need to help Sara free those pokemon remember?**

**Derek: Okay, I'll go away.**

**Me: Good!**

**Derek: Please review!!!**


	5. The Pokemon Contest

**Yay! Seven more reviews! Thanks Blaze-Lover for your review. It said I had a forth review right after I updated it. And thanks megaranger23 and HeroGuardian for his two reviews, and to bumbleblast96 and flareon200. You more than tripled the review count. Sorry it took me so long to update. I've been really sick for a long time, so I couldn't get back to a computer for a while. Oh, and from now on, I will capitalize the names of the Pokemon. You can thank flareon200 for that. Well, without farther ado, here's chapter five of **_**A Johto Journey.**_

**Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon, but I do have a Pokemon Diamond. That counts for something, right?**

"Finally!" Derek said as they stepped into Cherrygrove City.

"I can't believe it took us two whole days to free all of those pokemon that Team Rocket had captured." Sara said.

"At least I got Cyndaquil back." Derek said as he hesitantly scratched Cyndaquil's head, who was perched on Derek's shoulder, looking a bit uncomfortable.

Sara noticed both of their reactions, and smiled. "Don't worry, you two just need some time to get used to each other."

"Yeah, I know. Hey…what's going on over there?" Derek asked as he pointed to a large crowd of people huddled in front of a building.

"Let's go check it out." Sara said as she started walking towards the crowd.

As they got closer, Derek saw a bunch of trainers with one or two pokemon out practicing unusual moves and battle techniques.

"Oh, I know what it is…" Sara said rolling her eyes.

"What?" Derek asked as he continued to watch the trainers practice.

"It's obvious, isn't it? It's a Pokemon Contest."

"What's a Pokemon Contest?" Derek asked as he turned to stare at Sara.

"That's right. You don't know anything, do you?"

"Hey!"

"Kidding! Anyway, a pokemon contest is a place where half-baked trainers go when they aren't strong enough for gym battles. It's all about the 'beauty' of the pokemon and their attacks. It's pathetic."

"What did you say?!" A voice said from behind Sara and Derek.

They turned, and saw a girl their own age staring at Sara furiously.

"Pokemon contests are where trainers go to show off their Pokemon's natural abilities. The beauty of it is much more entertaining than watching two block-heads fight each other using pokemon. Pokemon battles are just barbaric." The girl yelled.

"There are pokemon battles in contests." Sara said with a smug smile on her face.

"Those are contest battles. The point of contest battles are to show off your Pokemon's attacks, while using your opponent's attacks to your advantage. Yeah, the pokemon may get damaged from the attacks, but the point is to show off the beauty of battling, not crush the opponent until they get hurt so badly they faint!"

"Whatever," Sara said as she turned and walked away.

"Hey!" The girl yelled as she ran after Sara. "How about this, you enter the contest with me. When I win, it will prove that contests are better than gym battles."

"Fine," Sara said as she turned and stared at the girl. "And when I win, it will prove that gym battles are superior to contests."

The two girls turned, and stormed off in opposite directions.

"Welcome to the Cherrygrove City Pokemon Contest. I'll be your MC, Darian! Now, let's meet our three judges!"

"What about this Cyndaquil?" Derek asked as he found a seat near the front.

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said in agreement.

"On my left is the Pokemon Contest Chairman, Mr. Contesta!"

"I welcome you all to the first contest this season. I hope you have a great time." A man with black and gray hair said.

"Next is the president of the Pokemon fan club, Mr. Sukizo!"

"Remarkable!" A short man with squinting eyes and a buzz cut said.

"And finally, Cherrygrove City's very own Nurse Joy!"

"Welcome all." A nurse with pink hair said.

"Well, now that the introductions are done, let's start the Cherrygrove City Pokemon Contest!"

The crowd cheered, startling Derek and Cyndaquil.

"Wow, the crowd really gets into this." Derek mumbled.

A girl about three years older than him came out on stage wearing a sparkling black dress. In her hand was a black-and-gray pokeball with a picture of three blue bubbles above the center button.

"Go, Poliwag!" The girl shouted as she through her pokeball up into the air. A blue tadpole with a spiral on its belly appeared surrounded by bubbles.

"Wow!" Derek said as the crowd cheered again. "I wonder what kind of Pokemon that is."

Cyndaquil jumped off of his shoulder, and dug around in Derek's coat pocket. When he reappeared, he had a small, red device in his mouth.

"What's this?" Derek asked as he opened the strange device.

"Poliwag, the tadpole Pokemon. Its skin is so thin, its internal organs are visible. It has trouble walking on its new feet."

"Cool! Thanks Cyndaquil!"

"Quil!"

"Now Poliwag, finish with bubble!"

Poliwag looked up, and blasted a stream of bubbles at a giant bubble overhead. It burst, and sent tiny sparkling water droplets down onto her.

The crowd cheered again as the trainer and her Pokemon bowed and left.

"Huh, it's over already? I've got to pay more attention."

The contest continued on, each trainer using a different Pokemon, who Derek looked up with his strange new device.

"Let's continue, shall we?" Darian asked. "Up next is Lilly Clearwater from Goldenrod City!"

A girl walked out wearing a sparkling midnight-blue dress.

"Hey," Derek said as he looked at her more closely. "It's that girl that Sara was arguing with.

"Come on out, Pichu!" Lilly said as she threw another black-and-gray pokeball with a lightning bolt sticker on it. It opened, and a small, yellow rat appeared in a shower of sparks.

"Pichu, eh?" Derek said as he brought out his small machine again.

"Pichu, the tiny mouse Pokemon. The electric pouches on its cheeks are still small. They cannot store much electricity yet."

"Alright Pichu, use sweet kiss!"

Pichu put both hands to her mouth, and blew out hundreds of hearts that floated around the stage.

"Now use charm!"

Pichu winked, and blew a few kisses, causing the audience to cheer even louder.

"Now finish up with thundershock!"

"Chuu!" Pichu said as it released a blast of electricity, popping all the hearts, sending sparkles raining down upon her.

"Now let's see what our judges think." Darian said.

"It was a perfect combination of power and cuteness." Mr. Contesta said.

"Remarkable." Mr. Sukizo said.

"Your Pichu is so cute that I just want to pick it up, and never let go." Nurse Joy said.

"Well, there you have it folks! Now, our final contestant is Sara Styler from Vientown!"

Sara walked out on stage wearing her normal street clothes, and holding a normal red-and-white pokeball. The crowd started to whisper, and some people even laughed.

"Let's go Eevee!" Sara shouted as Eevee appeared in the middle of the stage.

"Sand-attack!"

Eevee whipped up a cloud of sand around her.

"Now use tail whip!"

The sand started to clear, revealing Eevee spinning around, using tail whip at an extremely fast pace to clear the sand around her.

"Now finish with helping hand!"

Eevee's tail started to glow, releasing six yellow orbs that spun around her.

"Now Eevee!"

"Vee!" Eevee cried as the orbs shot up into the air and exploded, creating a fireworks display.

"Now let's hear from our judges!" Darian said after Sara and Eevee had taken their bows.

"Simplicity at it's finest. It reminded me of the early days of pokemon contests." Mr. Contesta said.

"Remarkable." Mr. Sukizo stated.

"Eevee's speed and power were truly amazing." Nurse Joy said.

"Now let's see who the judges chose as the eight finalists. On screen!" Darian said as she pointed to the giant screen above her. The pictures of the eight finalist appeared in a flash. Lilly and Sara's pictures were two that were among them.

"We will now take a short fifteen minute break." Darian said as she stepped off stage.

"Looks like we made it Eevee." Sara said as she looked at her partner.

"I'm impressed." Lilly said as she walked up to Sara with her arms crossed.

"I told you that contests were overrated."

"We'll just see what you think after the contest battles." Lilly said with a smirk.

"What's the big deal? A battle is a battle and I'm gonna win!"

"And Lilly and Chikorita knock out Seth and his Nidorino, sending them to the semifinals!"

"With just one hit, Eevee knocks out Hoothoot, sending Sara to the semifinals!"

"Time's up! And the winner moving on to the final contest battle is…Lilly and her Chikorita!"

"Eevee knocks out a Furret, making Sara advance to the final battle!"

"And now, please give a round of applause for our two finalists, Lilly and Sara!"

The crowd cheered again as the two contestants made their way to the stage.

"Go Sara!" Derek shouted as he clapped for his friend.

"Quil!" Cyndaquil shouted to show his support.

"The clock is set at five minutes. The trainer with the most points at the end wins. Now begin!"

"Let's go Eevee!" Sara shouted as she through her pokeball and Eevee appeared.

"Come on out, Chikorita!" Lilly shouted as her Chilorita appeared in a shower of petals.

"Let's finish this quickly Eevee, use tackle!"

"Use your leaf to block."

Eevee ran towards Chikorita and slammed into the leaf on her head. The attack harmlessly bounced off, not even damaging Chikorita.

"Now use razor leaf!"

Chikorita swung its leaf, and sent a flurry of spinning leaves at Eevee, sending her flying through the air.

"Now slam it down using vine whip!"

Chikorita shot out a long vine that wrapped around Eevee's tail, and slammed her into the ground.

"Eevee, use tail whip!"

Eevee quickly got up, and ran towards Chikorita.

"Block with your leaf again!"

Eevee tried to hit Chikorita with her tail, but was blocked by Chikorita's leaf every time.

"You might want to be aware of your points." Lilly said as she pointed at the scoreboard. Sara had already lost over half of her points, and was steadily dropping with each failed tail whip.

"Let's use sand-attack Eevee!" Sara shouted.

Eevee kicked up a cloud of sand, blinding Chikorita, causing Lilly's points to fall slightly.

"Now use tail whip!"

Eevee spun around quickly and hit Chikorita multiple times with her tail.

"Finish with tackle!"

Eevee slammed into Chikorita, sending her flying. Sara looked quickly at the scoreboard. Lilly was slightly ahead, but she had managed to almost knock Chikorita out.

"Use vine whip!" Lilly shouted.

A vine wrapped around Eevee, pulling her along with Chikorita.

"Throw Eevee in front of you and use razor leaf!"

Eevee was whipped into the wall in front of Chikorita, and then bombarded with Chikorita's razor leaf.

"Let's finish this Chikorita! Use a spinning tackle!"

"Use tail whip Eevee!"

Chikorita spun in midair, heading straight for Eevee. Just before the attack hit, Eevee spun, and slammed her tail down onto Chikorita, knocking her to the ground.

"Time's up!" Darian announced as Chikorita started to stand, but fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Chikorita!" Lilly said as she ran and picked up her injured Pokemon.

"Since Lilly has more points, and Chikorita fainted just moments after the time limit, the winner of the Cherrygrove City Pokemon Contest is Lilly Clearwater!"

"Good job Eevee." Sara said as she returned her Pokemon to its ball, and walked off stage.

"Hey! Wait up!" Derek shouted as he jumped out of the stands, and ran to catch Sara before she left without him.

"Come on, we should be going." Sara said as she started to walk again.

"So what do you think?" Derek asked.

"About what?"

"You know, Pokemon Contests."

Sara looked back at the stage where Mr. Contesta was presenting Lilly with a ribbon. She smiled as she watched Lilly do a victory pose with her Pokemon.

"They're okay."

**Me: I finally finished! This chapter was really long!**

**Derek: I thought you would never finish it.**

**Me: (Groan) Is this going to be a normal thing with you?**

**Derek: Yeah, probably.**

**Sara: Ah ha! So this is where you've been going after the chapter is over!**

**Me: Not you too!**

**Derek: Yay, Sara's here! Now the party can start!**

**Sara: What party?**

**Derek: I don't really know.**

**Me: No parties!**

**Sara: Aww!**

**Derek: Please review!**

**Me: I'm loosing my mind…**


	6. Bugs, Birds, and a Sentret

**Hey everybody! Okay, so for this chapter I would like to thank Blaze-Lover and HeroGuardian for their reviews. Also, I have set up profiles for the main characters on my profile page, so come check them out!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, or do I? (That would be a no.)**

"Hey Derek," Sara said as she finished packing up the rest of their campsite.

"Yeah?" Derek asked as he picked Cyndaquil up and put him on his shoulder.

"I think we should both catch a new Pokemon before we reach Violet City."

"What?" Derek asked confused.

"You know, capture a Pokemon in a pokeball so you can use it on your journey."

"Why would I want to do something like that?"

"Listen, in most gyms you have to use more than one Pokemon to battle. I've heard that the Gym Leader Falkner uses the 2-on-2 single battle rules on new trainers."

"Okay, so what do we do?"

"I'll show you." Sara said as she walked passed Derek and stood in front of a green caterpillar.

"What's that?" Derek said as he pulled out his strange device again.

"Caterpie, the worm Pokemon. It releases a stench from it's red antenna to repel enemies. It grows by molting repeatedly." The device said.

"When did you get that?" Sara asked as Derek put his device away.

"Prof. Elm gave it to me. Cyndaquil showed me how to use it during the Pokemon Contest. Why do you ask?"

"I just wondered where you got a Pokedex."

"So that's what it's called."

"Yep, now let's get down to business. Let's go Eevee!"

Eevee appeared from her pokeball in a flash of light, and took a battle stance in front of Caterpie.

"Use sand-attack!"

Eevee kicked up a cloud of sand at Caterpie, who was taken off guard by the attack.

"Now use tackle!"

Eevee charged into Caterpie, and sent him flying into a tree.

"Now, Capture On… I mean pokeball, go!

Sara threw a Pokeball at Caterpie, and he vanished inside. The Pokeball shook twice, before it was still.

"And that's it! Caterpie is mine now." Sara said as she picked up the pokeball.

"That's it?"

"Yep, now come on, we should get going."

"But what about me? Don't I still need to catch a Pokemon?"

"We'll find some on the way. Now come on!"

Derek and Sara walked for twenty minutes without seeing a single Pokemon. Derek was about to give up hope when a purple rat ran out in front of them."

"Let's see…" Derek said as he took his Pokedex out.

"Rattata, the mouse Pokemon. Cautious in the extreme, its hardy vitality lets it live in any kind of environment." The Pokedex said.

"Why don't you try to catch it?" Sara suggested.

"Alright! Let's battle Cyndaquil!"

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said as he jumped off of Derek's shoulder.

"Use tackle!"

Cyndaquil charged into Rattata, who was caught off guard by the attack and was sent flying."

"Let's use tackle again!"

Cyndaquil charged, but Rattata quickly dodged and used his own tackle in retaliation.

"Why don't you try something else?" Sara said as Cyndaquil's attack missed again.

"Like what? Cyndaquil can't use ember until the flame on his back ignites, so all I can do is tackle."

"Why don't you try smokescreen?" Sara suggested.

"Alright, Cyndaquil, use smokescreen!"

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said as he opened his mouth and shot a cloud of smoke out that engulfed Rattata.

"Now finish with tackle!"

Cyndaquil charged and tackled Rattata, sending it flying once again.

"Use a pokeball now." Sara instructed.

"Okay, let's go, pokeball!" Derek said as he threw a pokeball at Rattata. Rattata was sucked inside of the ball, which wiggled twice, before breaking open and letting Rattata back out.

"What happened?"

"Rattata escaped from the pokeball. If you don't hurry, it will get away."

"Huh?" Derek said as he turned and saw Rattata running away. "Hey, get back here!" Derek shouted before he and Cyndaquil gave chase.

"Derek, wait!" Sara said as she ran to catch up with them.

"Where did you go?" Derek said quietly as he searched the forest for Rattata. Suddenly, a brown Pokemon with a long tail burst out of a bush and crashed into Derek.

"Hey, it's a Sentret." Sara said as she helped Derek up.

"Let's see…" Derek mumbled as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Sentret, the scout Pokemon. It has a very nervous nature. It stands up high on its tail to scan wide areas." The Pokedex said.

"Sentret." Sentret said nervously as it stared up at Derek and Sara.

"Why don't you try to catch it?" Sara said.

"Alright, Cyndaquil let's…" Derek was cut off by a small bird that started to peck at his head. "Hey! Stop it!" Derek cried as he tried to swat away to bird.

"Pidgey, the tiny bird Pokemon. It is docile and prefers to avoid conflict. If disturbed, however, it can ferociously strike back." The Pokedex said.

"You're telling me!" Derek cried as Pidgey pecked him again. "Use tackle Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil tackled Pidgey, and pinned it to a nearby tree.

"Tret!" Sentret cried in alarm as it dropped a berry core and ran behind a nearby tree.

"So that's what this is about." Sara said as she picked up the core. "This Sentret must have taken a berry from Pidgey."

"Oh, well if that's the case, Cyndaquil, release Pidgey!"

"What are you doing?!" Sara cried in alarm as Pidgey broke free and started to fly at Sentret.

"This, Cyndaquil, use tackle!"

Cyndaquil knocked Pidgey into the tree that Sentret was hiding behind. Sentret peeked around the tree just in time to see Pidgey get back up.

"Throw a pokeball!" Sara said.

"Right, pokeball, go!"

Right before the pokeball was about to hit, Pidgey flapped his wings and flew up, barely missing the pokeball.

"Gi!" Pidgey cried as it rammed into Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil skidded across the ground and landed at Derek's feet.

"Cyndaquil! Are you all right?"

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said as it jumped back up, his back instantly igniting.

"Sweet! Okay, use smokescreen!"

Cyndaquil opened his mouth, and sent a cloud of smoke at Pidgey, trapping it.

"Now use ember!"

Pidgey was hit by the tiny fireballs, and fell to the ground exausted.

"Now, let's try this again. Pokeball, go!"

Derek threw a pokeball at the fallen Pidgey, and it sucked him inside. The pokeball wiggled twice before coming to a stop.

"Congratulations Derek! You caught Pidgey!" Sara said happily.

"Cool! Come on out Pidgey!" Derek said as he threw the pokeball up into the air. Pidgey appeared in a flash of light beside Cyndaquil.

"Oh, and you also caught this," Sara said as she handed Derek a second pokeball.

"What's this?" Derek asked as the pokeball opened up, and a Sentret appeared beside Pidgey.

"When Pidgey dodged the first pokeball, it kept on going and hit Sentret. Lucky, huh?" Sara said.

"Yeah, I guess…" Derek said as Sentret noticed Pidgey. It gave a yelp of surprise, and ran behind Derek, grabbing on to his leg with his claws.

"Ouch! Let go Sentret!" Derek said as Pidgey flew up and started pecking at Derek's head, trying to get through to Sentret.

"Hey! Ouch! Would you to cut it out!" Derek yelled as he tried to get away from his new Pokemon.

"Things just got a lot more interesting." Sara giggled.

"Quil." Cyndaquil agreed.

**Me: Well, Derek and Sara both caught their first Pokemon. Uh… What are you two doing?**

**Derek: I'm just saying that I managed to catch two Pokemon while you only managed to catch one!**

**Sara: So? If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have captured any of them. And besides, you caught Sentret out of pure luck.**

**Derek: You mean skill.**

**Sara: Whatever.**

**Me: Please review!**


	7. The Fiery Pokemon Trainer

**Okay, I know I've said this before, but I'm sorry for the long wait. I had a huge English report that's been keeping me busy for awhile. Anyway, I'd like to thank Blaze-Lover and Heroguardian for their reviews. Also, my friend accidentally used my account and reviewed two chapters. Anyway, time to get on with the chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

"We finally made it!" Sara said happily as she stepped through a gate and into Violet city.

"So what do we do now?" Derek asked as he followed her.

"Well, first we should head over to the Pokemon Center to heal, and then we head straight for the gym!"

"Don't you think we should wait a little bit? I mean, aren't trainers supposed to train their Pokemon a little before they go to a gym battle?"

"Since when did you know anything about Pokemon?" Sara teased, and then became serious. "Actually, you're probably right. Maybe we should have a couple of Pokemon battles first."

"So where to then?"

"Over there!" Sara said as she started to run towards a busy park.

"I can't believe you beat all of those trainers so easily." Derek said as he sat down inside the Pokemon Center.

"Well, I've been with Eevee for a long time, and we both have a lot of experience together."

"Yeah, but you battled with Caterpie like you've had him for months rather than years."

"I just have a better bond with Caterpie than you do with your new Pokemon, but your new Pokemon are starting to like you better. Just look at Pidgey. He's only pecked you today half as much as he did when you first caught him."

"Don't remind me." Derek said as he rubbed one of his recent injuries from Pidgey on his head.

Just then, the automatic doors to the Pokemon Center opened, and a boy with spiky, red hair and a bandana walked in.

"Hello Blayze." Nurse Joy said as the boy approached the counter. "How did the gym battle go?"

"I won." Blayze said with a smile.

"Good for you."

"Thanks. Can you please heal my Pokemon? They kind of need it after that last battle."

"Sure," Nurse Joy said as she took the pokeballs from Blayze. Blayze stood patiently as his pokeballs were deposited into a healing machine along with Derek's and Sara's. A few minutes later, the machine dinged, and the pokeballs fell out onto a tray.

"Ah, that new machine makes healing a breeze." Nurse Joy said as she picked up the pokeballs. "Here you are Blayze." She said as she gave the pokeballs back to Blayze. "Derek, Sara, your Pokemon are also healed."

"Thanks." Derek said as he and Sara picked up their pokeballs.

"Are you guys trainers too?" Blayze asked Derek as he finished strapping his last pokeball to his belt.

"I guess." Derek said.

"He means yes." Sara corrected.

"Cool! So, have either of you won any gym badges?"

"Not yet, but we're training our new Pokemon that we caught on Route 30." Sara answered.

"Huh. In that case, why don't you both have a practice battle with me?" Blayze asked, a grin spreading across his face.

"Sure! What do you think Derek?" Sara asked, turning to Derek.

"Sounds good to me." Derek replied.

"Alright then, let's go!" Blayze replied enthusiastically as he led Derek and Sara to a park similar to the one they had battled in earlier that day.

"So how about you and me battle first Derek?" Blayze asked when he finally stopped.

"Sure." Derek said as he tried to catch his breath.

"What kind of battle do you want?" Blayze asked.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Derek asked confused.

"You know. 1-on-1, 2-on-2, single or double battle. The list goes on and on."

"Why don't you choose?" Derek suggested because he had no idea what Blayze was talking about.

"Okay! How about a double battle with no substitutions?"

"He wants to battle you with two Pokemon at a time." Sara explained. "And you can't switch Pokemon."

"That's fine with me." Derek said, still slightly confused.

"Alright, Beedrill, Houndour, let's battle!" Blayze said as he threw two pokeballs into the air. A giant yellow wasp and a black dog with a skull marking on its head appeared.

"Beedrill, the poison bee Pokemon. Its best attack involves flying around at high speed, striking with poison needles, then flying off." The Pokedex said.

"Houndour, the dark Pokemon. It conveys its feelings using different cries. It works in a pack to cleverly take down prey." The Pokedex added.

"Now send out two of your own." Sara instructed.

"Okay! Pidgey, Sentret, let's go!" Derek threw two pokeballs, and his Pidgey and Sentret appeared. Sentret took one look at Pidgey, yelped, and then hid behind Derek's leg. Pidgey flew over to Derek, and started to peck at his head, trying to get through to Sentret.

"Your Pokemon seem to like each other." Blayze chuckled as he watched. "Do you still want to battle?"

"Yeah, ouch! Go ahead and start." Derek said as he tried to get a hold of Pidgey.

"Alright, let's use furry attack Beedrill!"

Beedrill flew forward, and jabbed its spiked arms at Pidgey. Pidgey was hit multiple times before it could get away.

"Don't take that Pidgey. Use peck!"

Nothing happened. Pidgey just looked at his trainer with a confused look on his face.

"I'm surprised you didn't know." Blayze said chuckling. "Pidgey can't actually learn the move peck. Your Pidgey is definitely a unique. I would say that it's father was probably a Spearow or Fearow, because of his temper."

"Fine, use tackle!"

"Push it back with poison sting."

Pidgey flew at Beedrill, but was blasted back by a barrage of poisonous needles from Beedrill.

"Pidgey!" Derek yelled as he struggled to get up.

"Let's finish it! Beedrill, use fury attack! Houndour, use bite!"

"No!" Derek yelled as the two Pokemon ran at his barely conscious Pidgey. "Sentret, you've got to help Pidgey!"

Sentret looked at the two charging Pokemon, and fainted at the sight.

"No!" Derek yelled again as the two powerful attacks hit Pidgey, instantly knocking him out.

"Both Pidgey and Sentret are unable to battle. The winner is Blayze!" Sara called.

"What is up with your Sentret?" Blayze asked as he walked over to Derek.

Derek shrugged. "He's just not used to battling."

"You aren't going to use him in your gym battle, are you?"

"Probably not. I guess that means I'll have to use Cyndaquil and Pidgey."

"Anyway, that was a pretty good battle."

"Yeah, I guess." Derek shrugged.

"Well, if you two are done, would you like a battle with me Blayze?" Sara asked.

"Sure! What kind of battle?"

"How about a one-on-one, with no substitutions?" Sara suggested.

"Sounds good to me!" Blayze said as he took out a Pokeball. "Houndaur, let's battle!" Houndaur reappeared in a flash of light.

"Okay, I'll use Caterpie!" Sara said as the green worm appeared in front of Sara.

"Uh… Are you sure you want to use a Caterpie?" Blayze asked, confused.

"Yes, now are we going to battle, or stand around all day?"

"Fine, Houndaur, use ember!"

"Use string shot Caterpie!"

Caterpie shot a string of web at Houndaur, who was about to release his attack. The web wrapped around Houndaur's mouth, preventing him from opening it.

"Now tackle Caterpie!"

Caterpie charged at Houndaur, and slammed into his stomach. The tiny fireballs that Houndaur had to store in his mouth came out along with the breath from his lungs in a miniature explosion. When the smoke cleared, Caterpie was standing on top of a fainted Houndaur with a look of surprise on his face.

"Houndaur!" Blayze yelled as he ran over to his Pokemon.

"Good job Caterpie." Sara said as she recalled her Pokemon.

"You're good Sara." Blayze said as he recalled Houndaur.

"Thanks! Now I know that I'm ready for the next gym battle!"

**Me: Well, it looks like Derek and Sara both found themselves a new rival.**

**Sara: How could you go so long without updating?**

**Derek: Yeah! It's been over a month for crying out loud!**

**Me: I'm sorry! I've been really busy lately.**

**Sara: That's no excuse!**

**Derek: Yeah! You better not take so long to update next time. We need to have our first gym battle sometime this year!**

**Me: Alright! I'll get right on it.**

**Sara: That's better**

**Me: Please review, that is, if you remember me…**


	8. Sky High Gym Battle Part 1

**Hello everybody! Alright, before we begin, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian, Blaze-Lover, and Megaranger23 for all of their reviews. Okay, and now that that's out of the way, let's get started.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.**

"So this is it, huh?" Derek said as he and Sara stood in front of the Violet City Gym.

"Yep. Are you nervous?" Sara asked.

"No." Derek said as his voice cracked.

"You sound nervous to me." Sara laughed.

"I'm not nervous! That was just…uh…puberty! Yeah, that makes sense."

"What?"

"Nothing!" Derek said as he looked away from her. "So…should we go in?"

Sara nodded, and pushed one of the doors open. Inside was a large hallway with a bright light at the end.

"Let's go," Sara said as she started to walk towards the light.

Sara and Derek got closer to the light, until they found themselves standing at the edge of a battle arena. The roof had opened up, allowing sunlight to fill the room.

"Welcome to the Violet City Gym!" A man said as he walked forward. "My name is Falkner, and I am the Gym Leader here."

"My name is Sara, and I'm here to challenge to a Gym Battle."

"My name is Derek, and, well, I'd like a Gym Battle too."

"Very well then…" Falkner said as he snapped his fingers and the arena started to rise. When it finally stopped, Derek saw that they were on the roof of the gym. There were two walls behind where both trainers stood, blocking most of the wind from the trainers.

"Let's begin. Since Sara asked first, I will accept her challenge first."

"This will be a two-on-two battle. The challenger may make substitutions. The Gym Leader may not. Are both sides ready?" A referee asked who had appeared out of nowhere.

"Yes." Sara said.

"Let's go." Falkner shouted.

"Very well…Begin!" The referee said as he raised both of his flags.

"Let's fly Pidgey!" Falkner shouted as he threw a pokeball into the air, releasing Pidgey.

"Let's go Caterpie!" Sara shouted as the green worm Pokemon appeared.

Falkner smiled. "Let's finish this quickly Pidgey. Use tackle!"

"Use string shot Caterpie!"

Caterpie shot a blast of string at Pidgey, who plowed right through it and into Caterpie.

"Caterpie!" Sara called as he struggled to get up.

"You should know better than to use a bug type Pokemon at my gym!" Falkner said as his Pidgey fell out of the sky and landed at his feet. It got up quickly, but Falkner saw that the string shot had glued Pidgey's right wing to his body. "No way!" Falkner cried as he realized that his Pidgey couldn't fly anymore.

"Yes! Now Caterpie, it's time for our secret weapon! Use bug bite!"

Caterpie ran forward, and bit down on Pidgey multiple times.

"Shake it off!" Falkner cried.

"Get off quickly!" Sara shouted to her Pokemon.

Caterpie jumped back, but not before taking a berry that Pidgey was holding. Caterpie quickly ate it, and was almost fully healed.

"Impressive. Use bug bite to greatly damage your opponent and heal yourself. I didn't know that Caterpie could learn bug bite though."

"He can. If you keep him from evolving, Caterpie will learn bug bite after awhile. It was only recently discovered."

"Interesting."

"Enough talking. Caterpie, finish this with tackle!"

"Use sand attack when it comes in close."

Caterpie ran forward into a cloud of sand that Pidgey had surrounded himself in. After a few seconds, there was a thud, and Pidgey came flying out of the sand cloud. Caterpie walked out a few seconds later, trying to get the sand out of his eyes.

"Pidgey is unable to battle! Caterpie is the winner!" The referee said as he raised one of his flags.

"Good job Pidgey." Falkner said as he recalled his Pokemon. "Let's fly Pidgeotto!" Falkner threw his pokeball into the air, and a bird that looked like an overgrown Pidgey with red feathers on its head appeared.

"What's that?" Derek asked as he took out his Pokedex.

"Pidgeotto, the bird Pokemon. It flies over its wide territory in search of prey, downing it with its highly developed claws." The Pokedex said.

"You were awesome Caterpie! You deserve a nice, long rest." Sara said as she recalled Caterpie. "Let's go, Eevee!" Eevee appeared in a flash of light, and took a battle stance in front of Pidgeotto.

"Start with tackle Pidgeotto!"

"Block with tail whip!"

Pidgeotto flew at Eevee, who at the last second whipped around and slammed her tail into Pidgeotto. The attack wasn't strong enough, however, and Pidgeotto slammed into Eevee, knocking her back.

"Eevee! Are you okay?" Sara called. Eevee stood back up and nodded. "Then use sand attack!"

"Use mud-slap Pidgeotto!" Falkner yelled.

Eevee whipped up a cloud of sand at Pidgeotto, while Pidgeotto scooped up some mud and threw it Eevee. The two attacks collided, and mud-slap overpowered sand attack, sending both attacks back at Eevee

"Eevee!" Sara yelled as she was covered in sand and mud.

"Eevee is unable to…" The referee said as Eevee burst out of the sand and mud mound, and charged at Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto did not have time to react, and was hit by a very powerful tackle attack from Eevee, and was followed by a tail whip that sent him crashing into the ground.

"Eevee…" Sara mumbled in awe of the power of the attacks Eevee had unleashed.

"That's a powerful adaptability you Eevee has." Falkner said as Pidgeotto flew back up.

"What?" Sara asked.

"Eevee's special ability, adaptability, makes all of her normal type moves about twice as powerful."

"Wow. Okay Eevee, use tackle."

"Pidgeotto, blow it away with gust."

Eevee ran forward, trying to tackle Pidgeotto, but was blown back by Pidgeotto's gust. Eevee slammed into a wall, and fell to the ground.

"Eevee is unable to battle! The winner is Pidgeotto!"

"Eevee!" Sara shouted as she ran over to pick up her fallen Pokemon. "You were great! You deserve a nice, long rest." She said as she returned Eevee to her pokeball.

"You're Eevee is really strong." Falkner said as Pidgeotto landed, panting slightly.

"Thanks. Now then, come back out Caterpie!" Caterpie reappeared in a flash of light.

"Don't underestimate this one Pidgeotto. Use gust."

"Big mistake." Sara said as Caterpie was blasted backwards by a strong gust of wind. "Use string shot!"

Caterpie shot his web, and hit the wall behind Pidgeotto.

"Looks like you missed." Falkner said amused.

"That's what you think. Caterpie, swing around and hit Pidgeotto with a tackle!" Caterpie used the string shot as a vine, and swung out of the gust and into Pidgeotto. Both Pokemon crashed into the wall, struggling to gain the upper hand.

"Shake it off Pidgeotto!"

"Use bug bite Caterpie!"

Caterpie managed to bite Pidgeotto several times before he could finally shake Caterpie off. Caterpie went flying back, but managed to land on his feet a short distance away.

"Finish with tackle!" Sara shouted

"Use your own tackle Pidgeotto!"

The two Pokemon charged at each other, and make a small explosion when they crashed. When the smoke cleared, Pidgeotto had fainted, and Caterpie looked like he was about to drop.

"Pidgeotto is unable to battle. The winner of the battle is Sara."

"We won!" Sara yelled as she ran to hug her Pokemon.

"Congratulations Sara." Falkner said as he walked over to her. "You've certainly proved yourself worthy of the Zephyr badge." Falkner handed her a small, silver badge in the shape of a diamond with wings attached to it.

"Alright! I won the Zephyr badge!" Sara said as she struck a victory pose.

"Vee!" Eevee said.

"Pi!" Caterpie added as he started to glow.

"What's happening?" Derek asked as he watched Caterpie change shape.

"Caterpie is evolving." Sara said as Caterpie stopped glowing to reveal a green cocoon with eyes.

"What's that?" Derek asked as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Metapod, the cocoon Pokemon. A steel-hard shell protects its tender body. It quietly endures hardships while awaiting evolution." The Pokedex said.

"Pod." Metapod said as he bounced over to Sara.

"That was one powerful Caterpie, and I wouldn't be surprised if Metapod was abnormally strong as well." Falkner said.

"Alright! And Metapod will also help me win my next badge, isn't that right?"

"Pod." Metapod said.

"If you don't mind Derek," Falkner said as he looked at the young trainer. "Could we please have our battle tomorrow? My Pokemon are very tired from that last battle."

"Sure." Derek said as he and Sara left for the Pokemon Center.

**Me: So, what do you think?**

**Sara: Yay! I won!**

**Derek: It's my turn next.**

**Sara: You have no chance.**

**Derek: What did you say?**

**Sara: Nothing.**

**Me: Please review!**


	9. Sky High Gym Battle Part 2

**Hello everybody. First off, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian and Blaze-Lover for both of their reviews. This may sound familiar, since they have been the only ones reviewing my last couple of chapters (with the exception of Megaranger23). How much time does it take to click a button and type what you think? On another note, I've updated the profiles for my characters on my profile page, so check it out if you haven't already. Okay, my rant is over…well, at least for now anyway.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, except in my dreams, but that's a different story.**

"So what do you think?" Sara asked as she finally finished polishing her badge.

"I think it should be very shiny by now. After all, you've spent the last hour polishing it." Derek replied.

"Not about the badge! I mean your Gym battle tomorrow!"

Derek and Sara were sitting out on the porch of their room in the Pokemon Center. There wasn't a cloud in the sky as the stars finally started to appear. Cyndaquil, Pidgey, Sentret, and Eevee had all fallen asleep, and Metapod just stared at the night sky.

"I don't know," Derek sighed. "I mean, you barely managed to defeat Falkner. How much of a chance do you think I have?"

"Don't talk like that. You just need to have confidence. Just look at all the battles you've won since you started your journey."

Derek snorted. "Yeah, the only battles I've managed to win were against those Team Rocket people and a few random trainers here and there. But I've lost at least twice that amount, and I've never won any important battles."

"Come on!" Sara said rolling her eyes.

"I've battled you, lost. I've battled Blayze, lost that too. You managed to weaken those people from Team Rocket both times we've battled them, and I would have probably lost those too if it wasn't for you."

"Be quiet!" Sara shouted as she smacked him. Derek looked at her, shocked that she had hit him.

"Now are you ready to listen?" Sara asked.

"You hit hard." Derek mumbled.

"Just listen. You can win that Gym battle tomorrow if you focus. And stop putting yourself down like that. You can do this."

"It's hopeless. You know that I have no chance of winning."

"That's it. Battle me. Right here, right now, and I'll show you that you can beat Falkner."

"What are you going to do?" Derek asked.

"Falkner overwhelms his opponents with the power of his attacks. Even mud-slap, a move that usually is used to disrupt your opponent, he used to overpower my sand attack. You've got to learn how to use that against him. Let's go Metapod!"

"Meta." Metatpod replied as he faced Derek.

"Cyndaquil?" Derek said as he slightly shook his Pokemon.

"Quil?" He yawned.

"Alright, let's do this! Metapod, use tackle."

"Cyndaquil, use tackle as well!"

* * *

Derek and Sara were standing in the same exact spot as they had been less then twenty-four hours ago. The Gym was in front of them, its doors looming over Derek and Sara.

"Are you ready?" Sara asked.

"I'm having a major case of Deja vu, but other than that, I think I'm okay."

"Remember all the training we did last night and this morning. You know how to beat Falkner."

"I guess so…"

"You know so." Sara scolded.

"Alright…Let's go."

"That's the spirit. Now then, let's go!"

Sara opened the doors, and walked down the same path to the room filled with light. They walked out of the hallway and into the arena, just like before, except the referee was waiting for them instead of Falkner.

"Falkner is waiting for you on the roof. Please step onto the battlefield so we may proceed.

Once again, the battlefield rose to the roof. Falkner was waiting for them, standing close to where his spot in the arena would appear.

"Are you ready Derek?" he asked when the arena settled onto the roof.

Derek took a deep breath before answering. "Yes." He said.

"The Gym battle between the Violet City Gym Leader Falkner and the challenger Derek from New Bark Town will now begin. Each trainer will use two Pokemon, and the match will be over once either all of the Gym Leader's or the challengers Pokemon are defeated. During the match, only the challenger will be able to make substitutions. Are both trainers ready?" The referee asked.

"You bet!" Falkner said.

"…I guess." Derek mumbled.

"Then begin!" The referee said as he waved both of his flags.

"Let's fly, Pidgey!" Falkner shouted as he threw his pokeball and the tiny bird appeared.

"Pidgey, let's go!" Derek said as the pokeball slipped out of his hand. Pidgey appeared, and once again started pecking at Derek's head.

"Why can't you leave me alone?!" Derek cried as he ran around in circles, trying to get away from Pidgey.

"Is there something the matter?" Falkner asked as he smiled slightly.

"Everything's under control." Derek said "Ouch! Stop it Pidgey!"

"Would you please help them out with a gust Pidgey?" Falkner asked. His Pidgey nodded, and sent a gust of wind at Derek and his Pidgey, knocking them both against the wall behind the trainer mound.

"Now you see why I had the walls installed. People didn't seem to like it if they were accidentally thrown off the edge four stories to the ground below. But then again, some of those weren't accidents."

"Interesting." Derek said as he finally managed to calm Pidgey down. "Can we start now?"

"Of course. Pidgey, start out with a tackle attack!" Falkner shouted.

"Pidgey, use your own tackle!"

Both Pokemon crashed into each other, but Falkner's Pidgey easily overpowered Derek's Pidgey, sending him crashing into the ground.

"Pidgey, you've got to get up!" Derek yelled as Pidgey struggled to stand.

"Let's finish this! Use tackle once more Pidgey!"

"No!" Derek yelled, and suddenly remembered the training he did with Sara.

***Flashback***

"_Metapod, use tackle once more." Sara said as Matapod bounced to the other Pokemon._

"_Pidgey and Cyndaquil, use tackle!" Derek shouted as both of his Pokemon ran at Metapod. They hit, and Metapod easily overpowered both Pokemon, sending them sliding back to Derek._

"_No!" Sara yelled. "Straight forward attacks are no good. You can't rely on power alone. Every time you try to overpower Falkner, his Pokemon will plow right through you!"_

"_Then what do I do?!" Derek yelled in frustration and anger. They had been training for hours and it was almost midnight._

"_Here's what you have to do…"_

***End Flashback***

"Pidgey, roll away from the attack!" Derek shouted as an idea hit him.

Derek's Pidgey rolled out of the way of Falkner's Pidgey, and he crashed directly where Derek's Pidgey had been a few moments before.

"Pidgey!" Falkner cried as his Pokemon started to stand, still not sure what had just happened.

"Now's our chance! Use tackle Pidgey!" Derek's Pidgey flew forward and tackled Falkner's Pidgey. Falkner's Pidgey rolled for a few feet before he was able to get back into the air.

"No one does that to us!" Falkner shouted. "Use tackle again Pidgey."

"Pidgey, turn to the side and use gust!" Derek shouted.

As Falkner's Pidgey came rocketing forward, Derek's Pidgey turned to the right, and flapped his wings, creating a huge gust of wind. The power of the attack sent Derek's Pidgey spiraling backwards, and out of the path of Falkner's Pidgey. Falkner's Pidgey continued forward, unable to stop, and flew directly into the gust, sending him back as well.

"Tackle!" Derek shouted. His Pidgey flew forward once again, and connected with Falkner's Pidgey. "Now hang on and do what you do best." Derek said with a slight smile on his face.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Falkner asked as Derek's Pidgey started to viciously peck at Falkner's Pidgey. "Shake it off!" Falkner cried, worried about his Pokemon.

The two struggling Pokemon started to fall, and crashed into the battlefield, whipping up a huge cloud of dust. When the dust cleared, Falkner's Pidgey had fainted, and Derek's Pidgey was barely standing. It looked at Falkner with a cocky grin on his face, before fainting.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle. This match is a draw." The referee announced.

"Good job Pidgey, return." Falkner said as he recalled his fallen Pokemon.

"You were awesome Pidgey! I take back all the bad things I've ever said about your peck." Derek said as he also recalled his Pokemon.

"That is a very unusual Pidgey. Would you like to consider trading him to me?" Falkner asked as he pulled out his next pokeball.

"Not a chance." Derek replied.

"Well, think about it. In the meantime, Pidgeotto, let's fly!" Falkner said as he sent out the large, brown bird.

"Cyndaquil, let's go!" Derek called as he sent out the fire Pokemon. Cyndaquil yawned, before taking a battle stance.

"Start with mud-slap Pidgeotto!" Falkner shouted. Pidgeotto dug his wind into the ground, and threw a small wave of mud at Cyndaquil.

"Jump over it and use tackle!" Derek shouted.

Cyndaquil easily jumped over the projectile, and continued forward towards Pidgeotto.

"Block it." Falkner said calmly. Pidgeotto held up one of his wings, and blocked Cyndaquil's attack. "Now use tackle." Pidgeotto opened his wings, pushing Cyndaquil back, before ramming into him and sending him flying.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted as he struggled to get up. He had landed on his back, which left him wide open to Pidgeotto.

"Use tackle again Pidgeotto!"

"Cyndaquil please, you have to get up!" Derek yelled, Pidgeotto getting closer every second.

"Quuuuuuuiiiiiiiiiilllllllllllll!" Cyndaquil shouted as his back suddenly burst into flames, sending him flying upwards, and dodging Pidgeotto's attack.

"That's what I'm talking about! Now use ember from the air!"

Cyndaquil launched several small fireballs at Pidgeotto, who was struck by the attack.

"Turn and use gust!" Falkner shouted.

Pidgeotto turned, and shot a huge gust of wind at Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil, unable to dodge, went flying back and crashed into the wall behind Falkner.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

"Finish this Pidgeotto, spin and use quick attack!"

Pidgeotto flew forward and started spinning at the same time. He drilled into Cyndaquil, the force of the attack causing both Pokemon to crash through the wall and out onto the other side.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

"Pidgeotto!" Falkner shouted, and both trainers ran to find their Pokemon.

They reached the other side, and saw Pidgeotto flying towards them with Cyndaquil grasped in his claws.

"Cyndaquil…" Derek said quietly as Pidgeotto dropped the fainted Pokemon into Derek's arms.

"Good job Pidgeotto." Falkner said as the brown bird landed on his trainer's arm.

"Cyndaquil is unable to battle. The winner is the Violet City Gym Leader, Falkner!" The referee announced.

**Me: …**

**Sara: …**

**Derek: …**

**Me: …Please review.**


	10. Confidence

**Yep, another chapter. (What did you expect? I don't have very many.) Anyway, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian, Blaze-Lover, and eli W. for their reviews. Anyway, sorry it's been a little while, but you've got to admit, it's not the longest I've been gone. I was busy with Easter stuff, and I was hardly able to get any computer time. Oh, and why do I always have to make excuses for when I'm gone for a while? Maybe I should see a doctor, or better yet, I could go see Sara the shrink… **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Derek was lying in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He hadn't eaten or drank anything since the Gym Battle.

Sara sighed, and put down the pokeball that she was polishing. "Come on Derek! It was your first Gym Battle! You almost won too! If it wasn't for Cyndaquil getting stuck in that wall, you probably would have!"

Derek said nothing. He just continued to stare up at the ceiling.

"You can't get like this every time you loose a battle Derek. Most trainers…"

"I lost before, and I didn't get like this, now did I?" Derek said, cutting her off. It was the first time he had spoken to her since the Gym Battle.

"Well, yeah, but…" Sara started before she was cut off again.

"I can't believe I let you trick me into thinking that I actually had a chance to win. I was starting to even enjoy being a Pokemon Trainer. You are always encouraging me, making me believe I actually have a chance of winning. In the end, it just makes the loss hurt even more."

"Derek…" Sara said, at a loss for words. For the first time since she had become a Pokemon Ranger, she started to feel her eyes water, and she knew that tears were about to come.

"Please leave me alone Sara. I need time to think, not just about me, but about my Pokemon as well. Ironic, huh? You were the one that made me like Pokemon again, and now we need to figure out what to do because of it."

Sara quickly got up and left before Derek could see her start to cry. Just before she closed the door, she heard the sound of three Pokeball opening.

* * *

"Vee?" Eevee asked, concerned for her trainer.

"It's nothing Eevee." Sara said as she tried to control her voice. The two were walking aimlessly through the crowded streets of Violet City.

"Hey Sara!" A voice called from behind her. Blayze ran up and stood panting beside her. "What's wrong? I saw you leave the Pokemon Center, and you looked upset. What happened?"

Sara said nothing. She just stood there, waiting for Blayze to catch his breath.

"Did you loose your Gym Battle or something?"

"No," Sara replied. She had finally stopped crying, and was back in control. "But Derek did."

"That's too bad. Where is he?"

"He's back in the room, trying to figure out what to do I think."

"Okay, so why are you crying?"

"Because before I left, Derek said some…things."

"Let me guess, he blamed you for his loss, right?"

"No, not exactly. But he might as well have. At least that way I would have punched him in the head and stormed out of the Pokemon Center. Oh, and you probably wouldn't be standing right now, but on your way to the hospital." Sara said as she smiled slightly.

"That's better." Blayze said as he broke out into a wide grin. "Oh, and if I ever forget, please remind me to stay on your good side."

"I don't think you would ever forget after I was done with you."

"Okay, I'm really scared now. But seriously, I think I should talk to Derek. Maybe I can help him out somehow."

"That's probably a good idea, although his confidence wasn't very good before the Gym Battle. I doubt its any better now."

"Alright then. I guess I'll see you later."

"Bye Blayze."

Blayze ran back to the Pokemon Center, leaving Sara standing by herself in the street.

"Come on Eevee," Sara said as she turned away from the spot where Blayze had been moments ago. "Let's see what we can find in this city."

Twenty minutes later, Sara and Eevee found themselves on the edge of Violet City. A few homes could be seen here and there, but it was obvious that the city had ended.

Sara sighed. "I guess we should be heading back…" She started to say when suddenly, a large crash echoed around them, and a huge lightning bolt shot up into the sky.

"What was that?!" Sara yelled as she waited for her hearing to come back. Eevee moaned beside her. "Come on Evee, let's see what that lightning bolt was."

* * *

"So what do you think?" Derek asked his Pokemon after he finished giving his speech. Cyndaquil, Pidgey, and Sentret all looked up at him, different emotions on their faces. Cyndaquil looked determined, Pidgey looked angry (but then again, he always looked like that), and Sentret looked concerned.

"I see this isn't going to be easy." Derek sighed as his door burst open and a giant yellow wasp flew in.

"Twineedle!" A voice yelled, and Beedrill's spiked arms started to glow. He then flew forward, and started to jab repeatedly at Derek and his Pokemon. Cyndaquil and Pidgey jumped out of the way, while Sentret fainted from shock, and Derek had to pull him off the bed by his tail before he was stabbed to death. Beedrill continued attacking, and completely destroyed Derek's bed, before returning his attention back to Derek and his Pokemon.

"Follow it up with furry attack!" the voice yelled again.

Beedrill lifted both of his arms, before launching a furry of dangerous blows with his arms. Cyndaquil and Pidgey both easily dodged the attack, while Derek rolled out into the hall.

"Hey Derek!" Blayze said cheerfully as Derek looked up.

"Blayze! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Derek yelled.

"Oh, well, I'm training my Pokemon, thinking about my next Gym battle, and, uh…what am I doing here again?"

"Trying to kill me!"

"Oh yeah, that's right. Beedrill, he's out here!" Blayze yelled. The giant yellow wasp flew out of the room, and started chasing after Derek.

"Not again! This is worse than Pidgey!" Derek cried as he ran down the hall away from Beedrill. "Sentret, make yourself useful and use scratch!"

Derek turned, and threw the barely conscious Sentret as Beedrill. The two Pokemon collided, and Sentret fell to the ground holding his head. He looked up, and fainted a second time when he saw Beedrill.

"Cyndaquil, Pidgey, I could use some help over here!" Derek yelled as Beedrill started flying after him again. Just then, Cyndaquil and Pidgey rammed into Beedrill from behind with a double tackle, knocking him to the ground.

"Wow, your Cyndaquil and Pidgey are a lot stronger than they were the last time I saw you. But that won't be enough. Beedrill, use poison sting!"

Beedrill twisted around, and fired off a barrage of poisonous needles at Cyndaquil and Pidgey.

"Now use furry attack!"

Beedrill got back up, and flew at Cyndaquil and Pidgey, hitting them both several times before they could recover.

"See what I'm doing?" Blayze asked as Beedrill continued to hammer Derek's Pokemon.

"Yeah, you're hurting my Pokemon! Stop it!"

"No! I'm using combinations! That is one of the key things a trainer needs to win a battle. When you battle, every time you get the upper hand, you always let your opponent recover. You can't do that! You need to keep them off their guard, and constantly hammer them with attacks. Of course, you need to do this smartly, and possibly go on the defensive if you're Pokemon needs to recover, but you can't just let your opponent control the battle. That is why you lost against me, and that's probably why you lost against Falkner."

"Fine, how about this? Pidgey, use gust!"

Pidgey flapped his wings, and managed to push Beedrill back a little with a gust of wind.

"Now use tackle Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil ran forward and tackled Beedrill in his abdominal area.

"Now Sentret," Derek said as he picked the barely-conscience Pokemon off the floor. "Use scratch!" Derek yelled as he threw Sentret at Beedrill. Sentret covered his eyes with his hands as he flew forward, and three long claws extended out of each hand. Both Sentret and Beedrill were shocked right before Sentret crashed into Beedrill, causing the bee Pokemon to faint. Sentret looked at what he had done before fainting as well.

"Very nice," Blayze said as he clapped his hands. "But I let you control the rhythum that time. By the way, why does your Sentret faint every time he tries to battle?"

"Who knows," Derek said as he picked up his unconscious Sentret. "But he managed to win his first battle, even though it might have been an accident."

"That's good. And I take it from your smile that things are better now?"

"Pretty much, but now I've got to figure out what I'm going to do now."

"What do you mean…" Blayze started to ask, but trailed off when he saw an angry Nurse Joy stomping towards them.

"You two should know better!" She scolded. "No battling in the halls."

"Wait until she sees you're room." Blayze said as he grinned.

"Blayze, why is it that every time you come to my Pokemon Center you have to break something?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Hey! I don't break something every time! Just a couple of days ago I…" Blayze started to rant, but fell silent when a loud crash shook the Pokemon Center. Suddenly, a huge bolt of electricity shot up into the sky about a mile away.

"What was that?" Derek asked, his ears still ringing.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out!" Blayze said as he ran out of the Pokemon Center and started running to where the lightning bolt had come from.

"Hey, wait up!" Derek cried as he ran after Blayze.

"Be careful!" Nurse Joy shouted as she turned around and started to inspect the damage done by the two trainers.

* * *

Sara emerged in a blackened field with her Eevee close behind. The surrounding trees were charred, and all of the grass was burned. An electrified boy was being dragged by two men with red R's on their shirts. Many more men and women wearing similar clothes were standing around a giant plane being loaded with cages. In the center of the field, two more men and a woman were standing around two fainted Pokemon. One was a blue lamb with yellow fur and another was a yellow dog with spiky fur.

"Let's see…" Sara said as she dug through her backpack, and took out her Styler. She opened it up, and started to punch in some numbers in her browser.

"Mareep, the wool Pokemon. Its fluffy coat swells to double when static electricity builds up. Touching it can be shocking." Sara read out loud. She punched in some more numbers, and a new page came up.

"Jolteon, the lightning Pokemon. It controls 10,000-volt power and can raise all the fur on its body as if it were sharp needles." Sara read from the page.

"Alright, put them both in cages and let's head out. Are the repairs to the ship finished yet?" The women standing over the two Pokemon asked.

"Yes, sir." One of the men said as the other got two cages.

"Excellent. The boss will be pleased." The woman said before laughing.

"Stop right there!" Sara said as she ran over to the men and woman.

"A child! I thought I said to seal off the perimeter!" The women yelled. "You two, take care of her!"

"Yes sir!" The two grunts said as they threw one pokeball each. A purple snake and purple bat appeared.

"Eevee, Metapod, I need your help!" Sara said as Eevee jumped forward and Metapod appeared out of his pokeball.

"Ekans, use wrap on Eevee!"

"Zubat, use supersonic on Metapod!"

The purple snake shot forward and wrapped around Eevee, preventing her from moving. Zubat fired supersonic waves at Metapod, who became confused.

"No!" Sara shouted. "Eevee, try to break free. Metapod, you have to snap out of it!"

"Arbok, use poison fang." A voice said behind Sara. Sara turned in time to see a giant purple cobra bite her shoulder. Sara screamed, before the poison took effect and knocked her out.

"I want these Pokemon locked up and in the plane now!" The women yelled.

"Yes sir!" The two men replied as they gathered up the fainted Mareep and Jolteon. Ekans dragged the fainted Eevee and Zubat pulled one very confused Metapod behind them.

"Bring her too." The woman commanded her Arbok. The snake nodded, and dragged Sara's limp body to the ship.

* * *

"Sara!" Derek yelled as he and Blayze emerged in the clearing.

"It looks like we have more guests." A woman said. She was standing in the entryway of a plane.

"What have you done with Sara?" Derek asked when he noticed that the woman had a red R on her shirt.

"Do you mean that girl that came through here a little while ago? Don't worry; she's just going to take a little vacation." The women said as she closed the door, and the plane started to hover.

"Get back here!" Derek said as he ran forward.

"Hey, wait for me!" Blayze shouted as he tried to keep up.

The plane was turning around, and was about to take off when Derek and Blayze jumped, and grabbed a hold of a railing. The plane started to move forward, unaware that it was carrying two extra passengers.

**Nope, no Derek or Sara at the end of this chapter. You can't really talk when you're holding onto a plane for dear life, or unconscious from a poison attack. When something like that happens, I'll just leave some notes here, just like I'm doing now.**

**The reason that Derek didn't have his rematch at the Violet City Gym is that even if he didn't have his confidence problem, he still has a lot to learn about battling. He would have probably ended up losing worse then before if I had decided to write it this chapter.**

**Still, that's no excuse for saying those things to Sara.**

**Blayze makes an appearance in this chapter! What do you think about him?**

**What is this mysterious plan that Derek was talking about with his Pokemon?**

**I doubt anyone can guess correctly what happened in the clearing. If you do, my writing is way too obvious.**

**I have a lot of notes here.**

**And finally, don't forget to review! **


	11. Rescue Mission

**Hey everybody! Okay, first, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian, CherriAme, and Blaze-Lover for their reviews! Also, if you would like to suggest a plot for a couple of chapters or a new character, that would be awesome. (If it's a plot, could you please PM it to me, so that everyone else doesn't know what might happen.) After all, it's you guys that make the story; I'm just the one who puts the words down.**

**Disclaimer: Me no own Pokemon, but me still trying. And why me saying me instead of I? Ah! Me so confused.**

"Hey, are you okay?" A voice asked.

"Does she look okay Jill?" A second voice said.

"Well… No, she doesn't," the person named Jill said. "But that's no reason to be so negative Jolt."

"Well sorry for me being negative! After all, we're just sitting in a jail cell on a plane full of criminals, all of my Pokemon are gone, and I'm trying to recover from being hit by lightning. Yeah, I have no reason to be negative, no do I?" the person named Jolt said.

"Well, it's not my fault were here."

"Oh, you don't think it's your fault? If it wasn't for that stupid-." Jolt started to say, but was cut off by Jill.

"Shh! I think she's waking up."

Sara moaned, and opened her eyes to see a young girl staring down at her. She had pale blue eyes, and long brown hair. A little ways away, a boy with slightly long, messy blond hair sat in a corner, also staring at her. He had a few makeshift bandages tied around his arms and his head.

"What happened?" Sara groaned as she tried to sit up.

"You might not want to move." Jill said, and she pointed to Sara's shoulder. Sara looked down, and quickly looked away. Her shoulder had a large bite mark on it, and was turning blue and purple. There was also a strange, clear liquid coming out of it.

"I tried to tie it up in a bandage, but I didn't have enough material."

Sara looked at the girl again, and saw that her clothes were shredded, and were the same color as the boy's bandages.

"It's good that you didn't." Sara said. She looked at the wound again and tried not to gag. "A bandage would have kept the poison inside of my body. Most of it has already leaked out. Plus, a little poison will actually kill any bacteria that try to infect it. Although it will leave a nasty scar…"

"How did you know all that?" Jolt asked.

"I used to be, well am, a Pokemon Ranger. I was taught all kinds of things about Pokemon. Things that would be useless to most trainers, I admit, but they still come in handy from time to time."

"Wow, that's amazing!" Jill said, her eyes sparkling.

"I guess. Anyway, how did you two end up trapped in here with me? Better yet, you could tell me what 'here' is."

"It's a long story." Jolt said.

"I've got nothing but time." Sara replied.

"Good point. Jill and I are from Violet City. Jill likes to help out Nurse Joy at the Pokemon Center, and one day this trainer gave Nurse Joy a Pokemon egg. Nurse Joy decided to give it to Jill, and that's why we're here."

"I'm not sure that I understand what you're trying to say."

"How can I explain this? Those Team Rocket people somehow found out that Jill had the egg, and demanded that she gave it to them. Jill refused, so they took her along with the egg. They told me that if I ever wanted to see my sister again, I would have to catch a Pokemon to replace the egg with. Another long story short, I found this Mareep, and I tried to catch it. I used my Elekid and Pikachu, but their electric attacks didn't seem to have any effect. Actually, it just made the Mareep's fur bigger. So I sent out my Jolteon, and its electric attacks actually seemed to affect Mareep. At least that's what I thought, until it fired off this gigantic thundershock attack from the electricity it had stored from my other Pokemon. My Jolteon tried to hold off the thundershock attack by using thunderbolt, but it just wasn't strong enough."

"What happened?"

"I didn't realize that this plane was flying above me, monitoring my progress. It had a lightning rod attached to it, and the electric attack shot up into the air and hit the plane. It also scorched the field that I was battling the Mareep in. The plane had to land because it was overloaded with electricity. They just picked up my electrified body and brought me here. I don't know what happened to the Mareep and my Jolteon."

"I do. I saw this lady standing near them giving orders to the other Team Rocket members. Both Mareep and Jolteon had fainted, and when I tried to save them, that lady attacked me with her Arbok."

"You must be talking about Lorvina. She's in charge of all the grunts around here." Jill said.

"Does she have pink hair and eyes?" Sara asked.

"Yes. She also has her special uniform that signifies that she's a Team Rocket Admin." Jill added.

"Yep, it was definitely her that attacked me."

"Great, now that we've introduced ourselves, what are we going to do now? They took all of my Pokemon, and we're locked in this cage with no escape." Jolt said.

"Oh, there's always a way to escape. Just give me some time to think of a plan. I've been in worse cases than this."

* * *

John Hawd had been with Team Rocket for two years, but had never received any promotion or praise for all of his hard work. In fact, he had been demoted several times, until he was in the lowest grunt position. Currently, he was stationed at the end of the plane, guarding the unloading door to the outside.

John sighed. "Come on! Why do I have to guard a door on a flying _plane_! What is Lorvina thinking? Who is going to break into a plane when it's in the air?!"

If he had been paying attention, he might have noticed that the door had started to glow a light red color in the center. The red expanded and got darker, until half of the door was shining. The only thing that made him look in that direction was when he heard a loud bang on the door.

"What the…?" John said as he noticed a large dent in the center. Two more dents appeared before the door burst open and a Beedrill and Pidgey flew in. John didn't even have time to scream when the two Pokemon attacked him and knocked him unconscious. Two boys climbed into the plane, one of them with a Cyndaquil on his shoulder.

"Knock, knock. Can we come in?" Blayze asked.

"Is this really the time?" Derek asked, not amused.

"Hey, when am I ever going to have a golden opportunity for that line again?"

"Whatever," Derek sighed. "Good job Cyndaquil. You too Pidgey, return." Derek said as he recalled both of his Pokemon.

"Thanks for your help Beedrill, return."

"Alright, we need a plan." Derek said. "How about you have a look around while I figure out what to do with him." Derek said pointing to John's unconscious form.

"Right, I'll get right on that."

"Oh, and Blayze…" Derek said when Blayze started to walk off.

"Yes?"

"Try not to let yourself be seen or captured."

Blayze grinned. "Aww, where's the fun in that?"

* * *

Derek had found a place to hide the body easily enough. There was a supply closet close to the entryway, and he just dumped John in there. He still had to wait ten more minutes before Blayze came running back.

"What's up?" Derek asked.

"Well, I'm not dead, as you can clearly see. The place is swarming with Team Rocket people. You can't go down a hallway without being seen."

"Then how did you?" Derek asked.

"Well, I kinda just waited a few minutes before coming back to see how you were doing."

"Great. How are your Pokemon?"

"Beedrill isn't in the best shape right now. He had a lot taken out of him between battling you and knocking down that door. On the bright side, my Houndour is in perfect health."

"That's better than me. Both Cyndaquil and Pidgey are tiered from that 'battle' that you put me through, and Sentret really isn't that much help."

"In other words, we're screwed."

"Hey you!" A voice yelled from the end of the hall. Derek and Blayze turned, and saw two grunts running towards them.

"I thought you said nobody saw you!" Derek said.

"They didn't. It's not my fault we are standing here arguing at the end of a hallway!"

The grunts were halfway down the hall, when there was a loud bang, and a door flew off its hinges and knocked both of the men into the wall. Sara stepped out of the room, holding her injured shoulder, followed by Jill and Jolt.

"Sara!" both Derek and Blayze yelled as they ran over to meet her.

"Derek? Blayze? What are you two doing here?"

"We're here to rescue you." Blayze said cheerfully.

"Who are they?" Derek asked, pointing to Jill and Jolt.

"That's Jill and Jolt. They were locked up with me."

"How did you manage to get out?" Derek asked.

"Luckily for me, those Team Rocket goons had no idea what a Styler can do, so they didn't take it away from me."

"What can a Styler do besides capture Pokemon?" Blayze asked.

"Shoot capture disks at a lock until it breaks."

"Great, so now that we've found you, what do we do now?" Derek asked.

"Well, first we have to find Jolt and my Pokemon. Then, we take over the plane, and somehow manage to land it.

"Okay, I have just one problem with that plan. You know those guys who you knocked out with that door?" Blayze said.

"Yeah, what about them?"

"They have friends." Blayze said pointing at the hoard of Rocket grunts filling into the hallway.

"Why didn't you tell us about them earlier?!" Sara shouted.

"I thought it would be rude to interrupt your conversation! Besides, I just barely looked over there and saw them, and you're yelling at me for not telling you sooner?!" Blayze shouted back.

"Uh, guys? Talk later, fight now!" Derek said as he took out three Pokeballs.

"Right," Blayze said as he reached for his own pokeballs. "Houndour, Beedrill, let's battle!"

"Cyndaquil, Pidgey, Sentret, let's go!"

Houndour, Beedrill, Cyndaquil, Pidgey, and Sentret all appeared in a flash of light, ready to battle. Well, everyone except Sentret was ready to battle.

"Go!" A bunch of grunts shouted. A Zubat, Koffing, Gastly, Grimer, and Ekans appeared in a flash of light. Sentret fainted almost immediately upon the arrival of the Grunt's Pokemon.

"Wow, I know almost all of those Pokemon. But let's check them out, just to be sure." Derek said as he grabbed his Pokedex.

"Zubat, the bat Pokemon. Even though it has no eyes, it can sense obstacles using ultrasonic waves it emits from its mouth."

"Koffing, the poison gas Pokemon. Lighter-than-air gasses in its body keep it aloft. The gasses not only smell, they are also explosive."

"Gastly, the gas Pokemon. This Pokemon's body is 95% made up of gasses, which are blown away in strong gusts of wind."

"Grimer, the sludge Pokemon. It was born when sludge in a dirty stream was exposed to the moon's X-rays. It appears among filth."

"Ekans, the snake Pokemon. It sneaks through grasses without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind." The Pokedex said.

"Be careful," Blayze said. "They're all poison types."

"Right," Derek said, picking up the unconscious Sentret. "Cyndaquil, use tackle! Pidgey, use gust!"

"Houndour, use ember! Beedrill, you use poison sting."

* * *

"Admin Lorvina!" A Grunt said as he saluted his commanding officer. Lorvina continued sipping her drink, waiting for the Grunt to continue. "I'm sorry to report that the prisoners somehow escaped from their cell, and are running lose onboard the ship."

Lorvina was sitting in a chair in the center of the control room. A few high-rank Grunts were steering the plane. Her Arbok was curled up in the floor next to her, relaxing.

"Have you sent a squadron to apprehend them?" Lorvina asked.

"Yes sir. Two of them had Pokemon, and are resisting capture. The other three are apparently searching for their Pokemon, which I assume are still in your possession."

"Did you say there were five escaped prisoners?" Lorvina asked.

"Yes, although how the other two managed to keep their Pokemon hidden when we searched them is beyond me."

"You fool! We only had three prisoners! The other two must have snuck onboard the ship somehow! There could be more of them hiding in another part of the plane! I want a full search of this ship, now!"

"Yes Admin Lorvina!" The Grunt said as he saluted again and went running off to form a search party.

"It appears that we have some uninvited guests." Lorvina mumbled as she stroked her Arbok. "No matter, the fools have no chance of escape. Even if they somehow managed to get past those worthless Grunts, they have no chance of defeating me." Lorvina chuckled, and continued to sip her drink.

* * *

"There's too many of them!" Derek yelled as the battle continued. Derek and Blayze had taken out the first five of the Grunt's Pokemon fairly easily, but were starting to have trouble when more and more grunts joined in the battle using similar Pokemon. Derek lost count at twenty-three enemies, and he was sure that there were at least thirty Pokemon against them now. _Thirty against four, not very good odds. _He thought.

"Have you found anything yet?" Blayze yelled behind him. Sara, Jill, and Jolt were franticly looking for their Pokemon in the various rooms around them.

"Nothing yet." Jolt shouted.

"Of course not!" Sara shouted. She was clutching her shoulder in pain. It had started to bleed again, and she had to keep constant pressure on it. "They wouldn't just lock our pokeballs away in some random room! It has to be close to where the center of operations is on the plane!"

"Well then we have to go forward!" Blayze yelled. "Bedrill, use twineedle!"

Beedril flew forward with both of his spiked arms glowing, and slammed into a Koffing and an Ekans, knocking them out. Beedrill gave a grunt of satisfaction before he was blasted from behind by a night shade attack from a Ghastly. A Zubat and Koffing launched their poision sting and poision gas attacks at Beedrill, knocking him out.

"Beedrill!" Blayze shouted as he quickly returned his fallen Pokemon back to his pokeball.

"What do we do now?!" Derek asked as the enemy Pokemon closed in on his own.

"We fight! What else can we do?!"

Sentret, who had recovered from his fainting, was hiding behind Derek's leg, taking the occasional glance at what was happening in the battle. Because of this, Sentret didn't see the Gaslty sneaking up behind him. The Gastly gave a quiet chuckle, and bit down on Sentret's tail. Sentret yelped, and jumped into the air. He started to run from the Gastly, who quietly chuckled, and disappeared. Unfortunately for Sentret, running away from the Gastly met running straight into the battle. His eyes were shut tight, just starting to cry, and his arms were flailing in the air.

Suddenly, three glowing claws shot out of both of Sentret's hands. He didn't notice any of this, and crashed headlong into Team Rocket's Pokemon…and plowed straight through them. Everything in his way was knocked out by his powerful claws. Cyndaquil, Pidgey, and Houndour barely managed to escape Sentret's attack, and the only Pokemon that weren't affected by the scratch attack, the Gastlys, all stared in shock at what was happening. Sentret kept on going, and started to attack the Rocket Grunts. The lucky ones were able to scatter and run away, while the not-so-lucky ones were knocked out by Sentret. Sentret, still oblivious to all that was happening, kept running down the hall.

"Sentret!" Derek shouted as he ran after the scout Pokemon with Pidgey and Cyndaquil not far behind.

"What just happened?" Blayze asked. He was shocked at what he had just seen, as well as Sara, Jill, and Jolt.

"I think Sentret just plowed through thirty-something Pokemon, knocking most of them out, going straight through their trainers, and still doesn't know what just happened." Sara said.

"Where can I get one of those?" Jolt asked.

"Never mind," Blayze said, coming to his senses. "Derek needs our help."

Sara nodded. "Right." She said, and started running after Derek.

* * *

"Thirty minutes until we reach Azalea Town." A Grunt told Lorvina.

"Excellent, we're right on time." Lorvina said as she finished her drink. She sighed contently, and heard three knocks against the door. She turned, and saw the door fly off its hinges, a crying Sentret running in. Arbok quickly sprung into action, only to be knocked away by a scratch attack. It slammed into the wall, and stood up slowly. Sentret finally was able to calm down and he opened his eyes… To see an angry Arbok looking like it was about to kill him. Sentret fainted from fright just as Derek came running in.

"Who are you?" Lorvina asked.

"My name is Derek." Derek said as he picked up his fainted Sentret.

"Well Derek, I am Lorvina, and I am going to be the last thing you see in this world. Arbok, use poison sting."

"Block with gust Pidgey!"

Arbok shot a barrage of poisonous needles, which were blown away by a gust of wind from Pidgey.

"Use tackle Cyndaquil!"

"Intercept with bite Arbok!"

Cyndaquil charged at Arbok, but was stopped when Arbok opened its mouth and bit down on Cyndaquil.

"No, Cyndaquil! Pidgey, help Cyndaquil out with tackle!"

Pidgey flew at Arbok, and slammed into its stomach. Arbok grunted as it released Cyndaquil, who fell to the floor, barely conscious."

"You'll pay for that!" Lorvina shrieked. "Arbok, use poison tail!"

"Pidgey, Cyndaquil, get out of there!" Derek shouted.

"Houndour, use ember!" A voice yelled. A flurry of fireballs hit Arbok, letting Pidgey escape with Cyndaquil.

"Blayze!" Derek said relieved.

"Sorry I'm a bit late. I was kind of side tracked along the way."

"What do you mean?" Derek asked.

"Jolteon, use thunderbolt!"

"Metapod, use string shot!"

Arbok was pushed back farther when a bolt of electricity and web hit it from the hallway.

"Sara, Jolt, you guys found you're Pokemon!"

"No! Those Grunts are useless." Lorvina shouted. "You, come here and help me!" She turned, and saw that the Grunts flying the plane were being attacked by Eevee, Mareep, Pikachu, and Elekid.

"Face it Lorvina, you can't win." Sara said.

"I'll get you for this!" Lorvina shouted as she recalled Arbok. She then opened up a door, and jumped out of the plane.

"Hey!" Derek shouted. He ran over to the door just in time to see Lorvina pull a strap, opening up a hidden parachute.

"Well, I guess we win." Blayze said.

"Not quite, we seem to be falling out of the sky." Sara said.

"What!" Jolt cried.

"What do we do?" Jill shrieked as she held onto her brother.

"Isn't it obvious? We jump." Sara replied.

"A fall from this altitude would kill us!" Derek shouted.

"Why are you guys so negative?" Sara asked.

"Why are you so calm?" Derek shouted back.

"If you panic, it will just make things worse. I learned that the hard way the first time I was on a falling plane."

"You've done this before?!"

"Yeah, but after seven or eight times, the thrill starts to ware off."

"What do we do?" Blaze asked.

"Didn't I already tell you? We are going to jump as soon as the plane is low enough. For right now, I suggest you return your Pokemon."

"Return." Derek, Blayze, and Jolt said.

"Good," Sara said as she returned her own Pokemon. "Now all we have to do is wait."

"What about the Mareep?" Jolt asked.

"I'll take it with me when I jump. Get ready; we're almost low enough to jump."

Jill, Jolt, and Blayze all joined Derek at the door, waiting for Sara to give the signal.

"Now!" She suddenly yelled. Derek took a deep breath, and jumped out of the plane. Blayze pushed Jolt and Jill out, before he jumped as well. Sara barely made it out of the plane in time as it kept on going and crashed into the forest, sending a huge fireball into the air.

**That was long. My longest chapter yet, and it didn't take me as long to write as some of my others.**

**So Team Rocket is plotting something in Azalea Town. That is never a good thing.**

**What did you think about the "rescue" mission onboard the ship?**

**Just to clear up a little confusion some of you might be having about Derek saying that he knows all of the Grunt's Pokemon they used against him, Derek has battled most of those Pokemon against other Grunts, but he didn't use his Pokedex on them.**

**Be honest, how many of you were shocked to see what Sentret managed to do. Hopefully he will be able to unleash that kind of power whenever he battles. That would certainly help Derek out.**

**What do you guys think about Blayze traveling with Derek and Sara on their journey? Derek and Sara can be so serious at times while Blayze is more laid back and relaxed. I think he would make a good addition to their group.**

**Speaking of Blayze, why do Sara and Derek seem to yell at him when he points out that they are about to be attacked?**

**A lot of things will be cleared up in the next chapter. Plus, another character from a previous chapter will return, if not next chapter than the one after that. Who do you think it is?**

**And finally, don't forget to review!**


	12. Return of a Coordinator

**Hey everybody. As usual, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian and Blaze-Lover for their reviews. Well, that's about it, so let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I do own all of my original OC's that I created.**

"How are you doing?" Derek asked.

"I'm feeling better, and the doctor said that I can leave tomorrow." Sara replied. Soon after the plane crash, Sara and Jolt were transported to a small hospital located near the Pokemon Center. Jolt had been released after one day, leaving Sara there on her own.

"That's good."

"Yeah, we're lucky that they decided to build a town closer to Union Cave."

"You're right, but Union Town still doesn't have very many people living in it."

"Wow, the word union brings me back home to Almia, visiting the Ranger Union for the first time, being able to work under Chairperson Erma, all my adventures with Eevee…"

"Do you miss being a Ranger?" Derek asked.

"Of course! But I feel like I need to go and experience new things, not just focusing on one, certain course."

Derek nodded, and then became serious. "Listen, Sara, about what I said back in the Pokemon Center in Violet City…"

"Don't," Sara said, looking Derek in the eye. "Let's just forget what happened there, okay?"

"Sure," Derek said, relieved.

"I just have one question." Sara said.

"What?"

"What were you going too decided with your Pokemon?"

"Oh, that. Well, I first asked my Pokemon of what they thought we should do now."

"How did that go?"

"How should I know? I don't speak Pokemon, but I think I got mixed answers. So I suggested what I was thinking."

"What?"

"I told them that I didn't think that I was ready to face the Falkner yet. That I needed to go out and experience more of the world."

Sara suddenly laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"It's just that you've changed so much since we first met. I still remember that annoying kid that kept on saying that he hated Pokemon. He really got on my nerves."

"Really? Because I seem to remember an over-peppy Ex-Pokemon Ranger who wouldn't leave me alone until I changed my ways.

"Hey!"

"Of course, I'd probably be at home right now; never knowing what my life could have been like if it wasn't for her."

"I'm not sure whether I should thank you or smack you."

Derek stood up. "I'd say thank me, because the doctor said that you should take it easy and because I really don't want to be in the bed beside you tomorrow."

* * *

"Here you go," Nurse Joy said as she handed Blayze and Jolt their pokeballs.

"Thanks Nurse Joy!" They both said.

"And here is your egg Jill."

"Thanks!" Jill said as she gently took her Pokemon egg.

"Well, now what do we do?" Blayze asked.

"Jill and I are going to relax today." Jolt said. "Tomorrow, we're going to head back to Violet City. What about you?"

"I'm probably going to train a bit here, since there isn't a Gym in this town, and head over to Azalea Town."

The double doors slid open, and Derek walked in.

"Your Pokemon are healed now Derek." Nurse Joy said.

"Thanks," Derek said. "What about that Mareep?"

"She's doing fine, and we should be able to release her back into the wild tomorrow."

"That's good."

"Hey Derek!" Blayze said loudly. "How about some training while you're stuck here waiting for Sara?"

"Sure, I need to work on my combinations, and with Sentret."

"Okay, but I'm not battling that little beastie. I need my Pokemon in tip-top shape for my next Gym Battle."

"That's probably a good idea, that is if Sentret _will _battle."

"True, so why are we just standing around talking? Let's get going!"

"Alright."

* * *

"Beedrill, use Furry Attack!"

"Cyndaquil, use Leer!"

Beedrill flew at Cyndaquil, only to stop when it saw the weird stare Cyndaquil was giving him.

"Now use Quick Attack Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil ran at Beedrill, and tackled the poison bee Pokemon, knocking him into a tree.

"Nice combination. I didn't know that Cyndaquil learned Quick Attack."

"He learned it around the same time that Pidgey learned Quick Attack, so I think they might have trained together."

"Interesting. Well, I think that's enough training for today, return." Blayze said as he returned the poison bee Pokemon. "Now it's time for your training. Let's go, Houndour!"

Derek turned to his own Pokemon. "Okay, which one of you wants to battle? How about you Sentret?"

Sentret looked at him with wide eyes, before quickly shaking his head.

"Oh, come on Sentret. I saw what you can do when you attacked those Pokemon on the plane."

Sentret looked at Derek, confused.

"Fine, how about you Pidgey?"

Pidgey replied by flying up, and starting to peck at Derek's head.

"Hey, ow! Cut it out! Ouch!"

"Hey, are you two gonna stand around all day, or are we going to battle?" Blayze called.

"What do you think? Let's use Quick Attack Pidgey!"

Pidgey flew at Houndour quickly, and managed to hit him. Pidgey kept on going, lifting Houndour into the air.

"Now use Gust followed by Tackle!"

Pidgey flapped his wings, creating a gust of wind that sent Houndour crashing into the ground. Pidgey followed it, and slammed him back into the ground with a Tackle attack.

"Houndour!" Blayze yelled. "I wasn't ready yet! You guys fooled me with that peck decoy!"

"What decoy? Pidgey does that to me all the time!"

"Yeah, but not recently!"

"That's because I've only used him in life-or-death situations! Pecking me then wouldn't have been the smartest thing to do!"

The two boys were interrupted when they heard clapping, and a girl stepped out of the trees.

"That was a fairly good combination that you just did. Are you trying to become a Coordinator? If so, your timing was a bit off with the Gust, and maybe you could use Tackle before the other Pokemon hits the ground. It's a brutal combination though, something that a Pokemon Trainer might try out." The girl said.

"Actually, I am a Pokemon Trainer." Derek said.

"Barely," coughed Blayze. Derek glared at him, and Blayze just smiled.

"Hey, wait," Derek said remembering something. "I know you. You were at the Cherrygrove City Pokemon Contest. Your name is Lilly, right?"

"Wow, are you a fan? I normally don't like Pokemon Trainers much, but you seem fine." Lilly said.

"Thanks, I guess. Anyway, I saw you battle against my friend Sara in the final round. Your Chikorita and Pichu were amazing!"

"Oh, now I remember you. You were that boy that was with her. You seemed so tense with that Cyndaquil on your shoulder."

"I take it Sara won, right?" Blayze asked.

"Actually, I beat that barbaric Pokemon trainer and won my second ribbon. And who are you? Another thick headed, know nothing Pokemon Trainer?"

"I don't know about thick headed, but I am a Pokemon Trainer." Blayze replied.

"If you were smart, you'd be studying to become a Coordinator like your friend here." Lilly said.

"I'm not…" Derek started to say before Blayze cut in.

"Derek, a Coordinator! That's a good one. Maybe you should start studying to be a comedian."

"That's it, how about a battle and I'll show you what Coordinators can do!"

"You're on! How does one-on-one sound?" Blayze asked confidently.

"Sure, it just means that I get to kick your but quicker."

"I thought you said Pokemon battles are barbaric?" Derek said.

"They are, but unfortunately, Coordinators still have to battle know nothing Trainers, or else their Pokemon will become too weak."

"Enough talk! Houndour, time to avenge yourself!"

"A Houndour, huh? Then I'll go with Pichu!" Lilly said.

Blayze laughed. "What do you think you're gonna do with that? Smother me in cuteness until I die?"

Lilly smiled. "You shouldn't underestimate my Pichu. Let's start out with Thundershock!"

Pichu charged up electricity, and launched multiple bolts at Houndour. Blayze laughed even harder when all of the Thundershocks missed.

"You call that an attack?!" Blayze called.

"Now Pichu," Lilly said calmly. The bolts exploded, shocking Houndour in all directions, and doing more damage than it would have regularly.

Sentret, who was watching the match behind Derek's leg, stared wide eyed as what Pichu had done.

"Houndour! Fine, if that's how you want to play, use Ember!"

"Counter with Thundershock!"

Pichu launched a bolt of electricity, while Houndour fired a barrage of tiny fireballs. The two attacks collided, neither of them giving way to the other.

"What do you think of that?" Blayze asked.

"You tell me. Pichu, add in Thunder Wave!"

A small blast of blue electricity shot up through the Thundershock, past the Ember, and hit Houndour. He was immediately paralyzed, which stopped his Ember attack, letting Thundershock hit him.

"Now use Sweet Kiss Pichu!"

Pichu blew a kiss at Houndour, making him confused.

"I've had enough of this! Houndour, use Bite!"

Houndour shook his head, trying to figure out what to do.

"Pichu, use Charm!"

Pichu winked, and sent a few hearts at Houndour, which confused him even more and also lowered his attack power.

"Come on Houndour!" Blayze yelled. Houndour started to run, but used Bite on a nearby tree instead of Pichu.

"What do you say Pichu? Should we end this now?" Lilly asked.

"Chu!" Pichu replied.

"Then let's use Thunderpunch!"

Pichu's tiny fist crackled with electricity as she punched Houndour, knocking him out.

"No, Houndour! Man, today is not my day. First I lose to Derek, and now I lost to some random Coordinator!"

"You are really pathetic." Lilly said as she recalled her Pichu. "You rely too much on power, and that makes yourself your own worst enemy."

"Well, it looks like I need to train more. A Trainer's job is never done."

"At least you're not a total waste of time." Lilly mumbled. "Hey Derek, what is your Sentret doing?"

Derek turned, and saw that Sentret was slashing at the air with his claws.

"Wow, Sentret is actually using an attack on purpose! It's a miracle!" Blayze joked.

"What do you mean by that?" Lilly asked.

"My Sentret hardly ever battles, and when he does he usually faints before my opponent even has a chance to move. To see him actually practicing a move is a rare sight." Derek said.

"I think I know why your Sentret is acting like this." Lilly said.

"Why?"

"I think he liked how I battled with Pichu, not focusing on power and speed like Sara and your friend over there, but by using combinations to upset your opponent. Even a weak Pokemon can be strong if you battle with them correctly. Sentret obviously prefers a different style of battling than your other Pokemon."

"Is this true Sentret?" Derek asked.

"…Tret." Sentret said shyly.

"Hey, I've got a great idea! There is going to be a Pokemon Contest here tomorrow, and I think you should enter with Sentret. It may help you get some ideas for a battle style."

"Wow, for a Coordinator that hates battling, you know a lot about it."

"I don't hate all battling; in fact, I enjoy a good battle from time to time, especially Contest Battles. Its meat heads like your friend that only focus on power that ruins it. Battling should be a thing of art, not something like two Pokemon hitting each other in the head with a stick."

"Hey," Blayze said. "I only did that once."

"Whatever. How does a little training with me sound Derek?"

"Sure."

* * *

Sara sighed, as she sat on a bench outside. She was only allowed twenty minutes outside everyday, and she savored every second of it. Suddenly, she heard a rustling in a bush behind her, and a Mareep came running out at Sara. It stopped a few feet away, and lay down on the soft grass.

"Mareep!" A familiar voice called. Jill stumbled out of the bushes, looking annoyed.

"Hey Jill!" Sara called.

"Hey Sara! And you found Mareep too!"

"What are you doing here?"

"That Mareep that we rescued got out again. She doesn't seem to like being cooped up in the Pokemon Center."

"I know how she feels. I hate being in the hospital. I can't wait for tomorrow when I finally get out."

"Jolt and I are heading home tomorrow."

"That's nice. Say, has your brother caught that Mareep yet?"

"No, and I don't think he will. He was only trying to catch her to save me, but now he has no reason to."

"I think I'm going to try to catch it. I could use an electric type on my team, and Mareep's energy is perfect."

"Go on ahead, but I'll need to take her back to the Pokemon Center regardless."

"Alright, let's go Eevee!"

Eevee appeared, and took a battle stance in front of Mareep.

"Let's start out with Tackle!"

Eevee ran forward and hit Mareep, making her roll a few feet. Mareep got up looking slightly annoyed, and launched a Thundershock attack at Eevee.

"Block it with Sand-Attack, and then use Tail Whip!"

Eevee kicked up a cloud of sand, that blocked the Thundershock, and ran forward hitting Mareep with her tail multiple times. Mareep responded by launching a Thunderwave attack that paralyzed Eevee.

"Eevee, let's try Tackle!"

Eevee ran forward again, but was stopped by her paralysis. Mareep responded by using her own Tackle, which pushed Eevee back a little.

"Eevee, return!" Sara said as she called back her Pokemon before it could be hurt worse. "Metapod, let's finish this!" Metapod appeared in a flash of light, looking uninterested.

"Start out with Tackle!"

Metapod started to hop forward, but was too slow and got hit by a Thundershock attack. Mareep charged up another Thundershock, and fired it at Metapod.

"Use Harden!"

Metapod raised his defense, a making the Thundershock bounce off.

"Now use Tackle!"

Metapod hopped forward, and managed to hit Mareep with a powerful Tackle that almost knocked her out.

"Let's try a pokeball, go!" Sara said as she threw the red-and-white sphere at Mareep. It sucked Mareep inside, and started to wiggle. After a few seconds, it stopped moving and dinged, signaling that Mareep was caught.

"Alright," Sara said as she held up the pokeball. "I caught a Mareep."

"Didn't I specifically tell you not to battle?" A voice said behind Sara. She turned, and saw the doctor walking towards her.

"Sorry, I kind of forgot."

"Your time is up anyway. Now hurry up and get back inside."

"Fine," Sara groaned. She handed her new Pokemon to Jill for her to take back to the Pokemon Center, and then followed the doctor.

* * *

**Yep, Sara caught her third Pokemon. Mareep seems pretty strong, but we'll just have to see what she really can do.**

**Derek's mysterious plan has been revealed! Turns out it wasn't very mysterious at all…**

**The return of Lilly followed by back-to-back defeats for Blayze, who is also known as the "meat head"**

**So Sentret is finally taking an interest in battling. Hopefully Derek can learn how to use Sentret to his full potential.**

**I'm still not sure whether or not Blayze is going to travel with Derek and Sara yet. If three at least three people say yes, then Blayze will come along for the ride.**

**Also, do you like this style of ending better, or the one with Derek and Sara talking to me? And the answer to the question is yes, I am insane.**

**Also, I'd just like to say that if you have an idea for a chapter or a character you want to see in this story, please send it to me. I want to know what you guys are thinking.**

**Another Pokemon Contest next chapter. This time, Derek is going to enter. How will he do? You'll have to read it to find out…**

**And finally, don't forget to review! Please!!!!!**


	13. The Union Town Pokemon Contest

**How's everybody doing? As always, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian and Blaze-Lover for both of their reviews. I've got two yeses for Blayze, and if I get one more then he'll probably be traveling around with Derek and Sara. Sorry this chapter took a lot longer to update. My friend's mom died last weekend, and I've been busy with funeral stuff. So I'm going to dedicate this chapter to him. Anyway, let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon!**

Sentret landed with a thud, and looked up. Lilly was staring at him and Derek critically.

"So, what did you think?" Derek asked.

"That was actually very good for a beginner, although your timing was a bit off on the last couple of Scratches."

"So, what's the big deal? Sentret is doing an awesome job!"

"True, but I've seen too many Coordinators who have lost because just one of their attacks was off by a second. Now, do it again!"

"Fine, Sentret, use Defense Curl!"

* * *

Sara pulled on her last glove, and looked at herself in the mirror.

"It feels so good to be back in my normal clothes." Sara muttered.

There was a knock at the door, and Sara turned to open it. Blayze walked into her room and sat down on the bed.

"Hey Blayze, what's up?" Sara asked.

"Nothing much. I'm probably going to head out soon. I need to do some training in Union Cave, after the two beatings I received yesterday."

"Who beat you?"

"Derek beat me first; although I say he cheated, and then some Coordinator named Lilly beat me. I remember that she said that she beat you once as well," Blayze said, glancing her way.

"If it wasn't for that stupid time limit, I would have won. But oh well, what is she doing here?"

"I'm pretty sure that she's going to enter a Pokemon Contest today. Oh, and she convinced Derek to enter too."

"What!"

"Yeah, I was pretty shocked too. But she actually got Derek's Sentret to train, and without fainting too! She said that 'Sentret doesn't like his type of battling,' or something like that."

"And Derek fell for it?"

"I don't know, maybe she was right. After all, we couldn't get Sentret to battle, and she just comes along and does the impossible."

"That's it," Sara said as she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.

"Hey, where are you going?" Blayze shouted.

"I'm going to find Derek and Lilly, and finish some unsettled business."

* * *

"The Union Town Pokemon Contest is about to begin! I'll be your lovely MC, Darian! Now before we begin, I'd like to introduce our judges. First up is Mr. Contesta!" Darian announced while the crowd cheered.

"I'm very pleased to be here to witness the first ever Union Town Pokemon Contest." Mr. Contesta said.

"Next up is Mr. Sukizo!"

"This Contest is sure to be remarkable!"

"And finally, Union Town's very own Nurse Joy!"

"Wow, so this is what a Pokemon Contest is like. I'm very honored to be here right now."

"Now please welcome our first contestant, Lilly Clearwater from Goldenrod City!"

Lilly stepped out on stage wearing her blue dress, while the crowd cheered even louder. "Come on out, Chikorita!" She yelled throwing a black-and-gray pokeball with a red confetti sticker in the air. Chikorita appeared in a shower of red confetti.

"Start out with Razor Leaf!"

Chikorita spun the leaf on her head, sending out a flurry of leaves.

"Now jump and use Vine Whip!"

Chikorita jumped into the air, and shot out vines from the buds around her neck. The vines struck the leaves from the Razor Leaf attack, stopping them in their tracks.

"Now spin while using Poison Powder!"

Chikorita started to spin while releasing a purple cloud around her. She landed gracefully on the ground surrounded by a glittering purple mist and leaves falling lazily to the ground. The crowd clapped and cheered at Lilly's performance.

"A very nice appeal. Although I think you should have incorporated the Razor Leaf better." Mr. Contesta said

"Pretty remarkable." Mr. Sukizo agreed.

"I thought it was very good, but then again, this is my first time judging." Nurse Joy said.

"And there you have it folks! Moving on, our next contestant is Bruce from Cherrygrove City!"

* * *

Lilly walked back to the Coordinator's lounge, where they could watch other Coordinators performing and get ready for their own performance.

"Hey Lilly, how did you do?" Derek asked.

Lilly sighed. "Okay, I guess. It was hard trying to come up with a routine for Chikorita. Hopefully our hard work will put us through."

"Well I thought it was good."

"Exactly, it was just 'good'. I needed it to be 'great' or 'awesome'!"

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll make it through. After all, you've taught me everything I know about Contests!"

"Maybe you should have found a better teacher…" Lilly mumbled.

"Oh great, now I know how Sara felt! Look, you've got to think positive! And when you make it through, because I'm sure you will, just focus on the present, not the past."

"You're right. Thanks Derek!"

"No problem. Now that that is done, can you help me with this thing?" Derek held up a black sphere that resembled an open pokeball.

"Oh yeah, I did promise you that you could use Seals and Ball Capsules." Lilly said thoughtfully. "Okay, you've seen them work before and you know how to use them in a Contest, or at least I hope you do. You were paying attention right?"

"Yes,"

"Well then, all you do is put the Seal on the outside," Lilly said while she placed a star-shaped sticker on the Ball Capsule. "And then you just put the pokeball inside the open Ball Capsule and close it."

"Thanks," Derek said as he took back his pokeball.

* * *

"Where is that Contest Hall?!" Sara yelled in frustration. Several people looked at her strangely before continuing on their way.

"Hey Sara!" A voice called. Sara turned, and saw Jolt and Jill running towards her.

"Hey Jolt, Jill. Sorry, but I can't talk right now. I've got to find the Contest Hall."

"We can show you where it is." Jolt said, gesturing for her to follow.

"Thanks," Sara said, following them.

"Anyway, we were trying to find you so that we could say goodbye. Jill and I have to head back to Violet City soon, and Jill here wouldn't leave until she said goodbye." Jolt said as he walked.

"Hey, you wanted to say goodbye to Sara as much as I did!" Jill said.

"Well, okay, I admit it. I wanted to say goodbye to you as well." Jolt said blushing.

Sara chuckled. "Thank you for showing me where the Contest Hall is. By the way, how are you doing Jolt?"

"Who, me? I'm just fine for someone who was hit by lightning and held captive on an airplane not too long ago."

"That's good."

"I guess," Jolt shrugged. "Anyway, how is that Mareep doing?"

"She's fine, thanks for asking. I hope I can start training her on my way to Azalea Town."

"You better be careful with that one. She can be quite shocking." Jolt started to laugh at his own bad joke.

"That wasn't funny at all Jolt." Jill said. "A little pathetic if you ask me really."

"Well, sorry for trying to be funny. Actually, I don't remember asking you for your opinion, now did I?"

"Hey, knock it off you two!" Sara scolded.

"Whatever. Well, look at that! There's the Contest Hall." Jolt said pointing at a building that looked similar to the Contest Hall in Cherrygrove City.

"Thanks again for your help you guys," Sara said, looking at Jolt and Jill.

"No problem! I guess we'll see you around Sara." Jolt said as he shook her hand.

"You bet," Sara replied.

"Umm…," Jill said looking at the ground. "I just want to say thanks for saving us and, um… I want you to have this," Jill took out a cylindrical container that was flat with a large cushion on the bottom and a rounded top. Inside was a white egg with red-and-blue shapes around it.

"Your Pokemon Egg! I can't take that from you!"

"Please, I want you to have it. I know you will look after it properly, and I don't want those Team Rocket people to take it again. Will you please take it Sara?"

"I don't think-"

"It's better not to argue with her when she's made up her mind about something like this." Jolt said. "Just listen to her and take the egg."

"Well, if you insist. I promise I will raise the Pokemon to the best of my abilities."

"Thanks Sara!"

"Well, we had better get on our way. Bye Sara!" Jolt said as he started to walk away.

"Bye!" Jill said before running after her brother.

"Goodbye!" Sara said, and then looked down at her new egg.

* * *

"Now please welcome our final contestant, Derek from New Bark Town!"

Derek took a deep breath, and stepped out onto the stage. The audience clapped politely, not sure what to expect. The last three Coordinators hadn't done a good job. One of them had even burned himself! Derek thought how he must look right now. He had borrowed a black tuxedo and top hat from Lilly that was slightly too big for him, and he felt out of place.

_Just relax and focus!_ Derek thought as he threw his pokeball with a star-shaped Seal on it.

"Sentret, let's go!"

Sentret appeared in a flurry of golden stars.

"Start out with Defense Curl!"

Sentret curled up into a ball, and started to spin. The stars around him started to swirl and orbit him slowly.

"Now stick your arms out and use Scratch!"

Sentret, still curled up, put his hands out and three glowing claws appeared on each hand. This caused Sentret to look like he had a glowing ring around his body and the stars to spin faster.

"Spin faster Sentret!"

Sentret started to spin faster, lifting off the ground, and the stars spun around him even faster.

"Let's finish this Sentret!"

Sentret uncurled, and using the momentum he gained from spinning, used Scratch on all of the stars, breaking them into even smaller pieces. Sentret landed, and struck a pose with Derek as the star fragment hovered around them.

"An excellent performance, although a bit too flashy for my taste." Mr. Contesta said.

"Remarkable," Mr. Sukizo said.

"Your Sentret is very fast and obviously well trained." Nurse Joy said.

Derek let out a sigh of relief before he realized the noise. The audience had obviously liked it, and was going crazy.

"And that's it for the Appeal Round! Now the Judges will decide on the top eight trainers who will move onto the Contest Battles!"

* * *

"You were great!" Lilly said as Derek sat down in the Coordinator's lounge.

"You think so?" Derek asked.

"Definitely!"

"What are you doing here Derek?" A voice asked behind him. Derek jumped out of his seat, and saw Sara looking at him.

"Sara! How…Why…When…What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was just about to leave the hospital, when a certain red-haired trainer bumped into me."

Derek gulped.

"And he told me this crazy story that you were actually competing in a Pokemon Contest. So I came here to slap some sense into you."

"I can't believe you actually travel with her." Lilly mumbled.

"I heard that! And what are you doing here? Are you looking for a rematch, because I'd be more than happy to oblige, and things will be different this time!"

"See, unlike you, I don't always try to solve all of my problems by fighting." Lilly mocked, which made Sara even angrier. "But if you want to know what I'm doing, I decided to compete in the Union Town Pokemon Contest, and I just happened to run into Derek and his friend when they were training. After I taught the block-headed trainer a lesson, I saw Derek's Sentret practicing his attacks. Derek told me that Sentret had never done something like that, so I naturally assumed that Sentret preferred a different way of battling that Derek was used to. It seems that I was right, seeing as how Derek is moving on to the Contest Battles." Lilly pointed to one of the TV screens that displayed the faces of the top eight trainers moving on to the finals. Both Derek and Lilly's faces were being displayed.

"And you let her talk you into this nonsense?" Sara asked.

"I thought you said Contests were okay!" Derek said, trying to defend himself.

"I didn't…" Sara started to say, but stopped when she saw Lilly smirking at her. "Fine, I said that, but why a Pokemon Contest?"

"I thought Trainers were supposed to try new things. Besides, what harm could it do? I'm only doing this so I can get closer to Sentret, not because I want to become a Coordinator. What's so wrong with that?"

"Fine," Sara said, defeated. "But as soon as you're done prancing around here, I'm heading to Azalea Town. Feel free to go with me if you want, or you could travel around with your new friend here!" Sara stormed out of the lounge before Derek could say anything else.

"Hey Derek!" Lilly said, waving her hand in front of Derek's face. "Your match is up first, and you've got to go, now!"

Derek shook his head a little, before walking down one of the hallways to the stage.

* * *

"This Contest Battle will have Derek from New Bark Town facing off against Bruce from Cherrygrove City! Are both Coordinators ready?"

"Yes," Derek said.

"You bet!" Bruce said enthusiastically.

"Both Coordinators have five minutes to lower their opponent's points as much as possible. Now begin!"

"Sentret, let's go!" Derek said as he threw his pokeball.

"Let's do this, Machop!" Bruce said as he threw a pokeball with a yellow confetti Seal on it.

Sentret appeared in a flurry of golden stars, while Machop appeared in a whirlwind of yellow confetti.

"Machop, eh?" As he held out his Pokedex.

"Machop, the superpower Pokemon. It hefts Graveler repeatedly to strengthen its entire body. It uses every type of martial art." The Pokedex said.

"Machop, use Karate Chop!"

"Block with Defense Curl, and then use Scratch!"

* * *

Sara was still fuming as she watched Derek's battle. "I don't know why I'm waiting for him," She grumbled.

_Come on, what is so bad with Derek participating in a Contest?_ A voice inside her head asked.

"Contests are for weak trainers who have no talent in Gym Battles and for sissies that like pretty things…" Sara mumbled to herself.

_But Lilly beat you and Blayze in battles before, and you know that most Pokemon Rangers approve more of Pokemon Contests than Pokemon Battles because of the extra care they are given. They don't have to battle until they faint, or be trained in harsh battle routines like Pokemon in the care of Trainers._

"Shut up!" Sara shouted, causing several heads to turn. She mumbled an apology, before walking away. She was so deep in thought, that she didn't notice where she was going, until she bumped into a boy around her age.

"Sorry," Sara mumbled.

"No problem," the boy said as he turned his attention back to the Contest Battle. Sara noticed that a small, blue crocodile was perched on his shoulder, transfixed by the battle.

"So…how's the Contest?" Sara asked, unsure of what to say.

"Not bad, but there are a bunch of rookies that don't really know what to do." The boy replied.

"Yeah, my friend is competing, although I'm not entirely sure why."

"Who's your friend?"

"His name is Derek. Some Coordinator convinced him to participate, so I'm stuck here until he's done."

"You know, it's a lot more interesting if you watch the match," the boy said, looking at her. "Actually, for a rookie, your friend Derek is actually doing very well. He's already made it to the semifinals."

"What!" Sara said as she looked at the Contest standings and saw that Derek had made it through to the next round.

"Man, I missed a lot!" Sara exclaimed.

"He did a very good job during his Contest Battle, easily defeating an opponent even though he was at a type disadvantage."

"Well, what would you expect? He did almost win at the Violet City Gym."

"Really," the boy said, as he stared at Sara. "That's very interesting. For a trainer, he's very good at Contests. He might even be the third best Coordinator left."

"Wow, so who are the other two?"

The boy chuckled. "I think I'll let you figure that out. After all, I think you should watch the rest of the battles. You might even pick up a few tricks for your Gym Battles."

"Yeah, hey wait! How did you know that I'm a trainer?"

"It's pretty obvious, the way you act, like your better than everyone else here. I don't know what you have against Contests, although you remind me a little of myself when I was younger. In fact, I didn't know what the big deal was until I actually went to one. Now, even though I'm not some screeming fan, I do enjoy a good Contest here and there."

"I don't know if I'd go _that _far."

The boy chuckled again, before looking at the timer for the Contest Battle. "Sorry to cut this conversation short, but I have to go. I guess I'll see you around," the boy said, holding out his hand.

"I guess so," Sara said, shaking it. "By the way, I never introduced myself. My name is Sara."

"Nice to meet you Sara, my name is Cody. Now, I've got to go."

"Where are you…?" Sara started to ask, but Cody had already disappeared into the crowd.

* * *

"The first semifinal is about to begin! Are both Coordinators ready?" Darian asked.

"Yes," Derek said with a worried expression on his face.

"Yes," Lilly said, a small smile forming at the corners of her mouth.

"Okay, five minutes on the clock, begin!"

"Sentret, let's go!"

"Come on out, Pichu!"

Sentret appeared in a flurry of golden stars, while Pichu appeared in a shower of yellow sparks.

"Pichu, start out with Thundershock!"

"Spin and use Defense Curl!"

A blast of electricity was shot at Sentret, which was easily absorbed by the spinning Pokemon, causing Lilly's points to go down.

"Now use Scratch!"

Sentret spun forward, and scratched Pichu with electrified claws.

"And Derek starts out strong, easily gaining the upper hand. Can Lilly turn this around?"

"Don't take that Pichu! Use Thunderpunch!"

Pichu retaliated by punching Sentret with an electrified fist, causing him to moan in pain.

"Now use Sweet Kiss!"

Pichu blew a kiss at Sentret, who became confused.

"Sentret! Get out of there!"

"Don't let him Pichu! Use Thunder Wave!"

A blue blast of electricity hit Sentret, paralyzing him.

"Sentret is getting hit with multiple status problems, and Derek's points are falling rapidly because of it. Can he find a way to turn this back around?"

"Finish him off with Thunderpunch!"

Pichu ran forward, and punched Sentret multiple times, who couldn't defend himself because of his status conditions.

"He still won't go down?! Use Thundershock Pichu!"

Pichu released a bolt of electricity at Sentret. Sentret was struck by the attack, and was obscured by a cloud of smoke.

"And Sentret is hit by a powerful blast of electricity! I don't think there is any possible way he could have survived that!"

Derek smiled. "Use Quick Attack!"

A brown blur charged out of the smoke and crashed into Pichu, knocking her back.

"What the…?" Lilly studdered as Pichu stood up slowly.

"I thought you might have tried something like that, so Sentret and I worked on a strategy against it. He recovered from confusion during your onslaught of Thunderpunches, and then slammed his claws into the ground during the Thundershock attack. The electricity passed through his body and into the ground, taking away his paralysis in the process."

"And a clever move by Derek saves Sentret. With only thirty seconds left, can Derek make a comeback?"

"Pichu, use Thunder Wave to paralyze him!"

"Dodge with Quick Attack, and then use Scratch!"

Pichu sent a bolt of blue electricity at Sentret, who evaded it easily and scratched Pichu with his sharp claws.

"Spin Sentret!"

Sentret spun with his claws held out, knocking Pichu back.

"Catch up with it with Quick Attack and slam her into the ground with your tail!"

"Thundershock Pichu!"

Pichu shot a blast of electricity at Sentret, who barely managed to avoid it. Sentret kept on going, and slammed Pichu into the ground with his tail.

"Times up, and the winner is…Derek from New Bark Town!"

The crowd cheered, and Derek waved. He turned to look at Lilly, who had picked up Pichu.

"That was a great battle," Derek said, holding out his hand.

Lilly stared at the hand, before reaching out and shaking it. "You better win," She said with a small smile on her face.

* * *

Derek and Lilly returned back the Coordinator's lounge to watch the second battle. A few people congratulated him as he walked past.

"Who would have thought that I would end up loosing?" Lilly said with a sigh. "Oh well, I'm glad that I lost to you instead of your friends."

"Thanks, I guess." Derek said as he grabbed his bag. A piece of paper fell to the ground, which was snatched up by Lilly.

"What's that?" Derek asked.

"It's a note, to you."

"Let me see," Derek said as Lilly gave him the folded piece of paper. Derek unfolded it and began to read:

_Dear Derek, Wow, you are really good at Contests. I'm sorry I acted the way I did earlier, but you're right, Contests aren't so bad. So if you want to travel around with Lilly and compete in Contests, that's fine with me. If you still want to travel with me and compete in Gym Battles, I'll be waiting at the entrance to Union Cave. If you're not there by 7:30, I'll assume that you've chosen to go with Lilly. Don't worry; I'll understand if you want to go with her. Your friend, Sara._

"What does it say?" Lilly asked.

Derek looked at her. "Sara's just wishing me good luck for my next battle." He lied.

"Well, that might be sooner than you think, look at that!" Lilly said pointing to the screen.

"Because our last Semifinalist has failed to show up, we can only assume that he has forfeited the match. Therefore, the Coordinator moving onto the final round against Derek is Meg from Olivine City!" Darian announced. The crowd booed and demanded for a battle, but Darian managed to calm them down. "The final match will start in five minutes. Both Coordinators have until then to prepare."

* * *

"One minute left on the clock, and it looks like Derek and Sentret have this battle pretty much finished up."

"Nidorina, use Poison Sting!" Meg shouted, desperate for a hit.

"Block with Defense Curl, and then use Quick Attack!"

Nidorina launched a barrage of poisonous needles at Sentret, which bounced off of the scout Pokemon. Sentret rolled forward, and slammed into Nidorina, knocking her out.

"And that's it! The winner of the Union Town Pokemon Contest is Derek and Sentret!"

"We won!" Derek exclaimed as Sentret jumped into his arms. The crowed cheered for Derek and Sentret, who both waved.

* * *

The sun was just about to set, as Sara sat impatiently on a rock. She checked he watch again. It was 7:35, five minutes after she said she would wait for Derek. She sighed, and picked up her bag, when she noticed a figure running towards her.

"Sara, wait up!" Derek yelled.

Sara started to smile, and then stopped herself. _He could just be coming to say goodbye,_ she thought.

"Sorry I'm late," Derek said, trying to catch his breath.

"If you're here to say goodbye, than can you do it quickly. I've got a Gym Battle waiting for me."

"Say goodbye? I'm coming with you!"

"What? But I thought…"

Derek shook his head. "I only entered it so I could get closer to Sentret. As of right now, there are no Contests in my future."

"Well then, let's go!"

"Right behind you, but don't you think we should spend the night here, it's getting late, and I don't think you want to sleep in a cave."

"Alright, but we head out first thing in the morning."

"Got it," Derek said as Sara started to find a good spot to camp. He put his backpack down, and slipped his new ribbon into a pocket.

* * *

**Wow, that was a long chapter. Again, I'm sorry I didn't have this up sooner. It is going to be really hard for me to update until summer vacation. My teachers are giving me a ton of homework, and I need to study for finals. I might be able to squeeze in enough time to do one more chapter, but don't be surprised if I don't update for three weeks.**

**So, Derek actually won his first Contest. Who would have thought?**

**Everyone seems to be going their own ways. Even though Blayze has already left, I'm still waiting for that final yes to have him traveling around with Derek and Sara.**

**Sara seems to be getting a lot of stuff lately. Can anyone guess what is inside the egg?**

**This is my longest chapter yet! Man, I've been saying that a lot lately.**

**Don't forget to review! Please!!!!!!!!**


	14. Union Cave

**Hola everybody! It's summer vacation! Yeah! Well, for me anyway. Again, sorry I haven't updated for a while, but at least I warned you ahead of time. Okay, thanks to HeroGuardian, Blaze-Lover, and Cinnamonpool for their reviews. And to lugia's-rider12 for her two reviews. That's all I have for now, so let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon!**

"Okay, its official: we're lost." Derek grumbled.

"We're not lost, we're exploring!" Sara said as she continued forward.

"Really, so you know exactly where we are."

"Of course, we're in Union Cave!"

Derek sighed. "Okay, why are you so happy?"

Sara looked at him. "Lighten up! It's an adventure! I've been to all sorts of spooky caves, but the thrill never wares off."

"Okay, how's this for adventure: We've passed that rock three times now." Derek grumbled, pointing to a rock with a strange white swirl on it.

"Okay, so maybe I'm a little lost…"

"A little?! We've been going around in circles for nearly an hour now!"

"You might want to keep your voice down," Sara whispered. "You never know what might be…" Sara stopped suddenly, and looked down the tunnel they were in. The lights attached the walls at the end of the tunnel had gone out, but Derek and Sara had just enough light to see a large moving mass coming towards them at an alarmingly fast rate.

"What is that?!" Derek shouted as he started to run away.

"Zubat," Sara replied as she ran ahead of him.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Derek and Sara stood panting in another part of the cave, which was free of lights.

"Well, if we weren't lost before, we are now." Derek sighed as he clicked on his flashlight.

"Yeah, it's never the best idea to yell inside a cave. You never know what might be lurking around the corner."

Just as Sara finished speaking, a large fireball appeared at the end of the tunnel they were in.

"See, what did I tell you?"

"Great, but I have a question, why is there a giant fireball in the middle of a cave?!"

"I don't know, but that's the thing about an adventure. You never know what's going to happen next."

"You really like getting lost in caves, don't you?"

"And you ask a lot of questions. Now come on, let's go see what that is."

Derek and Sara started walking towards the fireball, which was getting smaller and smaller each second.

"Come on! You can do it!" A voice shouted encouragingly.

"I…I can't!" A second voice said right before the fireball went out. Two torches were lit a few seconds later, revealing two men. They were both dressed in red clown outfits, and one sat breathing heavily on the cave floor.

"Hello," Sara said friendly. The two men jumped, and one almost knocked over a torch.

"Sorry!" Sara said as the man managed to catch the torch in time.

"It's okay," the first man said as he breathed a sigh of relief. "You just startled us."

"Yeah, sorry about that. By the way, my name's Derek. The cheerful girl over there is Sara."

"Nice to meet you Derek," the second man said, offering his hand. Derek shook it, and noticed that it was very warm. "My name is Ray, and my friend here is Bill."

"Okay, now that that is out of the way, what was that huge fireball thing?" Sara asked.

"Well, you see, Ray and I are fire breathers from Ecruteak City. That fireball you saw was one of the tricks we do."

"You see, we came to Union Cave to practice our skills as fire breathers. Since there is hardly anything flammable here, and the cave is filled with water, we thought it would be the perfect place to train."

"So you guys know how to get out of here, right?" Derek asked.

"Nope, sorry." Ray said as Derek groaned.

"You must be pretty lost. We're in one of the deepest parts of Union Cave."

"How did you get here then?" Sara asked.

"We hired one of the hikers to lead us down here. He's going to lead us back to Union Town in a few days."

"Where is he?" Derek asked.

"We can lead you to him, but on one condition." Bill said.

"What's that?" Sara asked.

"You have to beat us in a Pokemon Battle."

Sara grinned. "Okay. Who wants to take me on first?"

"I will," Bill said as he took out a pokeball. "Two-on-two sound good to you?"

"Sure," Sara said, taking out her own pokeball. "Let's go, Mareep!"

"That puff ball doesn't stand a chance! Koffing, go!"

Koffing and Mareep both appeared in a flash of light, ready to battle.

"Mareep, start out with Thundershock!"

Mareep blasted a stream of electricity at Koffing, who was knocked to the ground by the force of the attack.

"Now use Tackle!"

"Spin Koffing!"

Mareep charged forward, but was knocked away by Koffing's spinning body.

"Now use Tackle!"

Koffing charged forward and slammed into Mareep, causing her to moan in pain.

"Mareep, use Thundershock at close range!"

"Koffing, use Smog!"

Mareep unleashed another bolt of electricity, while Koffing released a purple gas from his body. The two attacks met, and the sparks from the Thundershcok caused the Smog to burst into flame. There was a miniature explosion, which filled the tunnel with smoke.

"Mareep!" Sara yelled, concerned for her Pokemon.

"Koffing, are you okay?" Bill yelled.

"What just happened?" Derek coughed.

"The Smog attack must have caught fire and exploded!" Ray coughed.

After waiting ten more minutes, the smoke finally cleared enough to reveal the two fainted Pokemon within.

"Well, it's pretty obvious that neither Pokemon is able to battle." Ray remarked as he looked at the two Pokemon. Sara ran over to Mareep, while Bill walked calmly over to Koffing.

"Is Mareep going to be okay?" Derek asked Sara as she checked Mareep's injuries.

"Yeah, but I need to get her to a Pokemon Center as soon as possible." Sara replied grimly as she recalled her Pokemon. "How's Koffing?"

"Ah, he'll be alright. Koffings are used to getting blown up. Are you ready to continue?"

"I guess," Sara said as she walked back over to her side of the "field."

"Time for round two. Koffing, go!" Bill threw another pokeball, and a second Koffing appeared in a flash of light.

"He has two Koffings?" Derek remarked.

"Actually, he has three." Ray replied.

Sara smiled. "Let's go, Metapod!"

Bill started to laugh as Metapod appeared in a flash of light. "You think a puny little Metapod has a chance against my Koffing?! Use Tackle!"

"Harden," Sara replied calmly.

Metapod tensed himself, and his shell started to glow white for a few seconds. Koffing continued forward and slammed into Metapod, only to be knocked away, doing more damage to himself than Metapod.

"Use Tackle Metapod!"

Metapod hopped forward, and slammed into Koffing, knocking him away again.

"Don't let him get away Metapod! Use String Shot!"

"Dodge it Koffing!"

Metapod shot a stream of thick web at Koffing, who didn't have time to dodge. The web wrapped around Koffing's body, connecting him to Metapod.

"Fine then, if that's the way you want to play, spin and drag Metapod towards you!"

"Don't let him pull you in Metapod!"

Koffing started to spin, and drag Metapod towards himself. Metapod tried to resist, but was slowly being pulled closer and closer to Koffing.

"Change of plans Metapod. Stop resisting and launch yourself at Koffing with a Tackle attack!"

Metapod gave a small nod in response, before launching himself at Koffing. Koffing groaned as Metapod rammed into him, sending them both into the cave wall.

"And that's that." Sara remarked as Metapod jumped down, leaving an unconcious Koffing stuck in the wall.

"Wow, you really know your stuff!" Bill said as he recalled his Koffing.

"Thanks, so now will you show us where this hiker is?"

"Not so fast," Ray said as he walked towards her. "You still have to battle me."

"Oh, come on!"

"How about a battle with me instead?" Derek asked.

"Sure little man! One-on-one sound good to you?"

"Okay, let's go Pidgey!"

Pidgey appeared in a flash of light, and started pecking Derek's head.

"Will you cut that out?!" Derek shouted as he tried to grab a hold of the tiny bird Pokemon.

"Go Vulpix!"

A tiny, red fox with six tails appeared in a flash of light, and started to lick one of her paws.

"Vulpix, huh? Let's check it out." Derek mumbled as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Vulpix, the fox Pokemon. It controls balls of fire. As it grows, its six tails split from their tips to make more tails." The Pokedex said.

"Start out with Ember!" Ray shouted.

"Use Gust to blow them away!" Derek shouted.

Vulpix shot a barrage of tiny fireballs at Pidgey, who blew them away with a gust of wind.

"Now follow up with Quick Attack!"

"Dodge with your own Quick Attack Vulpix!"

Pidgey flew at Vulpix, or rather, the spot where Vulpix was a few seconds ago. Pidgey squawked in confusion as he stopped the attack and looked around.

"Now Vulpix!"

Vulpix came out of nowhere and crashed into Pidgey's back, sending him flying into a wall.

"Follow up with Ember!"

"Blow it away with Gust!"

Vulpix shot a barrage of tiny fireballs at the struggling Pidgey, who barely managed to create a gust of wind in time to block it.

"Fine, if long range attacks won't work, get in close with Quick Attack, and then use Will-o-wisp!"

"Pidgey, wait for Vulpix to appear."

"What's Derek doing? Why isn't he trying to dodge?" Sara asked.

"Who knows?" Bill replied.

Vulpix suddenly appeared in front of Pidgey with a blue orb of fire in her mouth.

"Now Pidgey, use Sand-Attack!"

Pidgey threw a glob of sand at Vulpix's face, causing her to moan in pain as the sand burned her eyes. The Will-o-wisp went wide, missing its target completely.

"Now push Vulpix away with Gust, followed by a Quick Attack!"

Pidgey whipped up a gust of wind that pushed Vulpix back slightly, followed by ramming into her with a Quick Attack, sending her flying back into a wall. Vulpix moaned, and slowly stood back up.

"That's the spirit Vulpix! How about a Quick Attack?"

Vulpix started forward, but tripped, and fell to the ground.

"Finish it with Tackle!"

Pidgey flew forward and crashed into Vulpix. Vulpix gave one last moan, before fainting.

"Vulpix!" Ray shouted as he picked up his fallen Pokemon. "You were great. Take a nice long rest."

"You did it Pidgey!" Derek shouted as Pidgey flew over and started to peck at his head again. "Ouch! Will you stop that?! Return," Derek cried as he returned Pidgey to his pokeball.

"So now will you show us where this hiker is?" Sara asked.

"Sure, he's right there," Ray said, pointing at Bill.

"What are you talking about?" Derek asked.

"I used to be a hiker before I met Ray. And since you beat both Ray and me, I'll lead you out of this cave for free." Bill said.

"Alright!" Sara said happily.

"Let's get going," Bill said as he picked up his backpack, and started walking away.

* * *

**So, there you have it. I was originally going to have Bill and Ray lead Sara and Derek to a real Hiker, who they had to battle in order for him to help them out, but I decided to go with this because I wanted to update as soon as possible.**

**Speaking of Bill and Ray, their characters are actually based on the two fire breathers that you battle in Union Cave in Gold, Silver, and Crystal, who have the exact same Pokemon and names.**

**Next chapter will be in Azalea Town, and will have the return of Blayze.**

**Still accepting OCs.**

**Oh, and expect updates to come more frequently, now that I don't have to go to school all day.**

**And finally, please review!!!!!!!!!!**


	15. Slowpoke City

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* * *

**

Hello people! I told you I would update faster. I'd like to thank Southern Jaguar94, Supastar-Man, lugia's-rider12, writers block 2000, eli W., HeroGuardian, and Blaze-Lover for all of their reviews. That's the most reviews I've ever gotten for one chapter. You guys rock! Now let's get on with the show!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I take credit for all of the OCs I created.**

"This will be a three-on-three battle between the Gym Leader Bugsy of Azalea Town and the challenger, Blayze Flair from Blackthorn City. During the battle, only the challenger will be able to make substitutions, the Gym Leader will not. Are both Trainers ready?" the referee asked.

"Yes," Bugsy said. He was a young boy with long, purple hair. He wore an outfit similar to a bug catcher, but without the hat and the net.

"You bet!" Blayze said smiling.

"Then let the battle begin!"

"Metapod, come on out!" Bugsy said as he threw his pokeball. The cocoon Pokemon landed in front of Bugsy, looking uninterested.

"Beedrill, let's battle!" Blayze shouted as the poison bee Pokemon appeared in front of him.

"I'll let you have the first move Blayze." Bugsy said calmly.

"Alright then, use Poison Sting Beedrill!"

"Harden Metapod!"

* * *

"And here we are," Bill said as the cave opened up to reveal a bright blue sky over a lush meadow.

"Thanks so much Bill." Sara said gratefully.

"Just helping out those in need. Azalea Town is about ten minutes away from here in that direction." Bill pointed to the right, where a small path had been worn into the ground.

"Now if you'll excuse me, we've got to get going."

"Bye Bill! Bye Ray!" Derek shouted as the two fire breathers headed back into the cave.

"Now then, we should get going. I've got to get Mareep to a Pokemon Center." Sara said.

"Lead the way," Derek said as they continued on their way to Azalea Town.

* * *

"Beedrill, use Furry Attack followed by Twineedle!" Blayze shouted.

"Harden!" Bugsy shouted.

Metapod started to glow white as Beedrill started to attack her with a barrage of Furry Attacks and Twineedles. Metapod groaned, as the continued assault, combined with the poisoned status she had gained earlier in the match, chipped away at her defenses.

"Full power Beedrill!"

Beedrill brought one of his claws up high, before slamming it back down onto Metapod. There was a cracking sound, and Metapod's shell started to crack in multiple places. She gave one last groan, before falling to the ground, unconscious.

"Metapod is unable to battle. Beedrill is the winner!" The referee said, holding up a red flag.

"Metapod!" Bugsy yelled as he ran onto the field to see how badly his Pokemon was hurt.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to kill her!" Blayze said, worried.

"You didn't kill her. In fact, it looks much worse than it really is. Thankfully, Beedrill just punctured the outer shell. I do need to get her to the Pokemon Center though." Bugsy said as he picked up his Pokemon, careful to avoid doing further damage.

* * *

"So this is Azalea Town, huh?" Derek asked as he looked around. "You know, it feels kind of… dead."

"What are you talking about? Just look at all the Slowpoke!" Sara said, gesturing him to look around. There were Slowpoke everywhere. In people's yards, on rooftops, on the street, even in the middle of the road!

"Yeah, but… they're not _moving._ All they're doing is lying around, and staring at the sun! I'm not sure if that one is even breathing!" Derek said, pointing to a Slowpoke that was about to fall off the wall she was laying on.

"Don't worry, she's just asleep… I think."

"And where are all the people?!"

"I don't… Stop!" Sara said, pulling him back roughly. Derek lost his balance, and fell to the ground.

"What was that for?!" Derek yelled as he jumped back up and brushed off the dirt from his jacket.

"You almost stepped on that Slowpoke," Sara said, pointing to the pink blob that was lying in the middle of the street.

"That's it; let's see if the Pokedex can tell me why these things are just lying around."

"Slowpoke, the dopey Pokemon. Although slow, it is skilled at fishing with its tail. It does not feel pain if its tail is bitten." The Pokedex said.

"Well that helped me out a lot." Derek grumbled.

"Come on, we have to get to the Pokemon Center!"

"Alright, let's go then."

"Watch out for the Slowpoke!"

* * *

"Well, I'm back, so let's continue our battle!" Bugsy said.

"Alright, and I'm really sorry about what happened to Metapod."

"Don't worry about it. These things happen and besides, my Metapod is tough. Now are you ready to face one of the strongest Pokemon in my bug arsenal?"

"Bring it on!" Blayze said smiling.

"Alright then, Spinarak, go!" Bugsy shouted as he threw his pokeball. A green spider appeared in a flash of light in front of him.

"Do you want to continue Beedrill?" Blayze asked. Beedrill nodded. "Okay, then start out with Poison Sting!"

"String Shot!" Bugsy shouted.

* * *

"Hello! Nurse Joy, are you here?" Sara shouted as she ringed the bell at the desk. Even the Pokemon Center seemed deserted. There wasn't a Trainer or Pokemon in sight.

"That's weird," Derek mumbled. "I wonder what happened to Nurse Joy."

"What am I going to do about Mareep?" Sara asked.

"I don't know. Is there any other town nearby with a Pokemon Center?" Derek asked.

"I don't think so. The two closest Pokemon Centers from here would be in Union Town, which we'd have to go back through Union Cave to get to, or Goldenrod City, but we have to go through the Ilex Forest to get there."

"Then what are we…" Derek started to say, but stopped when the hallway doors opened and an old man walked out.

"What's with all the racket?" He asked.

"Sorry sir, but my Mareep needs to be looked at by Nurse Joy. She got caught in an explosion, and she's not doing too good."

"Well, let me take a look at her," the old man said as he held out his hand for Sara's pokeball. She reluctantly handed it over, and the old man released Mareep onto a stretcher.

"Let's see here… A couple of minor burns, some scratches and bruises…" the old man mumbled to himself.

"So is she going to be okay?" Sara asked.

"I should think so. Chansey!" the man yelled. A pink Pokemon with an egg wearing a nurse's hat suddenly appeared behind the old man.

"A Chansey, huh?" Derek said as he took out his Pokedex.

"Chansey, the egg Pokemon. It is said to deliver happiness. Being compassionate, it shares its eggs with injured people." The Pokedex said.

"Chansey, take this Mareep back and tend to her burns." The old man ordered.

"Si!" Chansey replied as she wheeled Mareep into another room.

"So, any other Pokemon you need me to look at?" the old man asked.

"Mareep was in the worst condition out of all of our Pokemon, but all of our other Pokemon do need to be healed though…" Sara said.

"Well then, I'll just put them in that healing machine thing for ya."

"Thanks Mr….?"

"Call me Kurt."

* * *

"Finish him off with Furry Attack!" Blayze shouted.

"Poison Sting Spinarak!" Bugsy shouted.

Spinarak launched a barrage of poisonous needles from the tree he was perched in. Beedrill barely managed to dodge it, before flying up and unleashing a Furry Attack on him. He was hit a few times before Beedrill knocked him out of the tree and onto the ground.

"Spinarak is unable to battle. Beedrill is the winner!" the referee said as he raised a red flag again. Beedrill landed on the ground, breathing heavily, as Bugsy returned his fallen Pokemon.

"I must say, I'm really impressed with your Beedrill Blayze," Bugsy said. "But he doesn't stand a chance against my final bug Pokemon. Scyther, go!" Bugsy threw his last pokeball, and a giant, green bug with two scythe-like hands appeared in front of him.

"Beedrill, use Poison Sting!" Blayze shouted.

"Fury Cutter Scyther!"

Beedrill launched a barrage of poisonous needles at Scyther, who plowed right through them and started slashing Beedrill with his hands. Beedrill moaned in pain before collapsing.

"Beedrill is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner!" the referee said as he held up a green flag.

"You were great Beedrill, return." Blayze said as he recalled his Pokemon. "You may have defeated my Beedrill Bugsy, but you'll never beat my next Pokemon. Houndour, let's battle!"

Bugsy smiled. "We'll just see about that…" He mumbled as Blayze sent out his second Pokemon.

* * *

"So Kurt, where is Nurse Joy?" Derek asked as he waited for his Pokemon to be healed.

"Nurse Joy? She's back in the ER trying to glue a Metapod's shell back together." Kurt said chuckling.

"What's so funny about that?" Sara asked.

"Well, you see, the Metapod's trainer, Bugsy, comes running in here about every other week with one of his Pokemon in some strange predicament. I think last time his Spinarak got caught in his own web, and got so tangled up, that it took us over three hours to get him out."

"So is this Bugsy a local trainer?" Sara asked.

"Nah, he's the Gym Leader. In fact, I think he's in the middle of a Gym Battle right now." Kurt said, looking at a clock. "I could take you over to the Gym after your Pokemon are healed if you want."

"That would be great, but Kurt, there are a few more questions that I have." Sara said.

"Well, what are they?"

"Well, where are all the people in this town? It seems deserted. And two, what's with all the Slowpoke?"

Kurt sighed. "It's sort of a long story, but I guess we've got time, if you want to listen to it."

"Sure, we've got nothing else better to do." Derek said.

"Well, you see, long ago Azalea Town suffered a horrible drought. Nothing would grow, and there was hardly any water left. Even the Pokemon were leaving! But one day, a Slowpoke came along, and when it yawned, rain clouds started to form. It rained heavily, and brought life back to Azalea Town. Since then, Slowpoke have been respected, and allowed to come and go as they choose."

"Okay, but that still doesn't answer my question as to why everyone is gone."

"Well, Azalea Town is actually going through a pretty bad drought right now. You saw the river when you entered. It was almost completely dried up. So a bunch of people, pretty much the entire town actually, decided to go to Slowpoke Well to see if they could convince the Slowpoke to use their Rain Dance attack. I decided to stay behind and help out Nurse Joy, just in case something happened. It looks like that was a pretty smart decision too."

"So do you help out at the Pokemon Center a lot?" Derek asked.

"Sometimes, yes, but mostly I focus my time on making my special pokeballs."

"What kind of pokeballs?" Sara asked.

"Oh, all different kinds, and all of them have special uses that set them apart from normal pokeballs. I use different kinds of apricorns to create these special pokeballs. I could show you my workshop, if you'd like."

"Maybe later," Sara said as the healing machine dinged.

"Looks like your Pokemon are healed." Kurt said as he took the two trays of pokeballs out of the machine. "Here you go!"

"Thanks," Derek said as he and Sara took their pokeballs back.

"Now then, do you two still want to go over to the Gym?" Kurt asked.

"Lead the way." Sara said.

* * *

"Houndour, use Ember!" Blayze shouted.

"Swords Dance Scyther!"

Scyther started to spin around rapidly, raising his attack. Houndour shot a barrage of tiny fireballs at him, only to bounce off, having no effect.

"No go in for a Fury Cutter attack!"

Scyther flew over and started to slash at Houndour with his sharp claws. Houndour howled in pain as each hit became more and more powerful.

"Use Ember to retaliate!" Blayze shouted.

Houndour growled, and launched another barrage of fireballs at Scyther. Scyther yelped, and quickly flew away from the attack.

"Well Blayze, it looks like our Pokemon are pretty evenly matched." Bugsy said.

"That's what you think. Use Bite Houndour!"

Houndour shot forward and bit down on Scyther's arm. Scyther yelped in surprise, and tried to shake the Dark Pokemon off.

"Scyther, use Double Team!"

Scyther made five copies of himself, who surrounded Houndour. The Scyther Houndour was biting quickly faded away, leaving him surrounded.

"What are you going to do now Blayze?" Bugsy taunted.

"How about I show you, use Smog Houndour!"

Houndour spun, and released a cloud of purple gas from his mouth. The cloud expanded, until it developed all of the Scyther copies. One by one they all disappeared, until they were all gone.

"What the…" Blayze said in confusion as he looked around for the real Scyther.

"Use Fury Cutter Scyther!"

There was a rustling in the trees above Houndour. Houndour looked up just in time to see Scyther flying down to meet him. He barely had enough time to register this before he was hit with Scyther's claws, knocking him unconscious.

"No!" Blayze yelled.

"Houndour is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner!" The referee said as he held up a green flag.

* * *

"Here we are," Kurt said as he stood in front of a giant, dome shaped building.

"Uh…Kurt, weren't you supposed to take us to the Gym? All I see is a greenhouse." Derek said.

"This is the Gym." Kurt said as he stepped through the double doors and into a forest. "Come on, what are you waiting for?" He asked when he noticed that the two trainers weren't following.

Derek and Sara quickly caught up, and Kurt continued his trek through the forest. I few minutes later, the trees thinned a little to reveal a battle field. On one side was a purple-haired boy, who Derek guessed was the Gym Leader, and on the other side was…

"Blayze!" Derek called.

Blayze turned, and saw Derek and Sara waving at him.

"Well look who it is," Blayze said as he smiled at them.

"Do you know them?" Bugsy asked.

"Yeah, that's Derek and Sara. They'll probably want to challenge you when we're done. I don't know who the old man is."

"Oh, that's Kurt. He makes pokeballs. Now, are you ready to continue?"

"Yep, and even though I haven't had him for a long time, I know we can win. Sandshrew, let's battle!" Blayze threw his Pokeball, and a brown, armadillo like Pokemon appeared in front of him.

"I didn't know Blyaze had a Sandshrew." Sara said.

"A Sandshrew, huh?" Derek said, taking out his Pokedex.

"Sandshrew, the mouse Pokemon. To protect itself from attackers, it curls up into a ball. It lives in arid regions with minimal rainfall." The Pokedex said.

"Your Sandshrew doesn't stand a chance against my most powerful bug Pokemon! Use Furry Cutter Scyther!"

"Defense Curl Sandshrew!"

Sandshrew curled up into a ball, and waited for Scyther's attack. Scyther slashed at Sandshrew, only for his attacks to bounce off, not doing any damage.

"Now knock that Scyther away with Rapid Spin!"

Sandshrew started to spin, and he knocked Scyther away.

"Fine then, use Double Team so they don't know where you're going to attack from Scyther!"

Scyther produced copies of himself, who surrounded Sandshrew.

Blayze grinned. "I thought you might try something like that again. Sandshrew, use Swift!"

Sandshrew opened his mouth, and shot a flurry of stars at one of the Scythers. Before they reached the Scyther, however, the stars turned, and hit a different Scyther. The real Scyther cried in pain as the stars tore at his skin.

"That's the real Scyther Sandshrew! Use Defense Curl followed by Rollout!"

Sandshrew curled into a ball, before rolling at the real Scyther. Scyther was hit by the attack, and was thrown backwards into a tree. He groaned, before finally falling unconscious.

"Scyther is unable to battle. The winners of the Azalea Town Gym Battle are Blayze and Sandshrew!"

"We won!" Blayze cheered as he hugged his Sandshrew.

"Excellent battle Scyther, return." Bugsy said, recalling his fallen Pokemon. "That was a thrilling battle Blayze. As proof of beating me and my bug Pokemon, you've earned the Hive Badge." Bugsy opened a case, which contained a badge in the shape of a ladybug.

"All right! I won the Hive Badge!" Blayze said, striking a pose.

"So, which one of you wants to battle me next?" Bugsy asked Derek and Sara.

"I do," Sara said.

"Okay, then just let me heal my Scyther at the Pokemon Center quickly."

* * *

"How are the preparations going?" A man asked. He wore a white jacket over a black shirt with a red "R" printed on it, and white pants. His eyes gave nothing away as he stared at a Grunt.

"Everything is going according to plan sir!" The Grunt said.

"Excellent. What about the townspeople?"

"They have been complaining, but have not shown any resistance."

"Good. I want to be done with this as soon as possible. I don't want any more surprises."

"Blake!" A voice yelled.

"Speak of the devil." Blake muttered. "Hello Lorvina! I thought you wouldn't make it."

"That's Admin Lorvina to you." She snapped.

"Someone seems a bit cranky. It wouldn't have to do with that airship that you blew up, now would it?" Blake asked.

"That wasn't my fault!" Lorvina shrieked.

"Ah yes, I suppose it was those children's faults. I saw the recovered security tapes, and they were very entertaining. My favorite part was when they cornered you, and you had to jump out of the plane like the coward and weakling you are."

"How dare you address an Admin like that?!"

"I could say the same thing to you. A lot has happened since your crash. The boss is not happy."

"What are you talking about Blake?"

"That's Admin Blake to you. And you are no longer in charge of this mission. Because of you, we were forced to wait until another airship large enough could make it to this blasted cave!"

If looks could kill, Blake would have been killed twice by the stare Lorvina was giving him.

"I can't have you messing anything else up, so I'm going to give you a task so simple, that even you can't mess it up. Tomorrow, I want you to take about thirty Grunts and capture the rest of the people in Azalea Town. I already have most of the town in my custody, but I don't want any more surprises. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes,"

"What was that?"

"Yes, _sir_." Lorvina growled.

* * *

**Well, things aren't looking too good for the people of Azalea Town. Most of them are captured, and the few that are left are going to face thirty Rockets.**

**Blayze won the Hive Badge! Even if he did almost kill a Metapod in order to get it.**

**And an appearance by the pokeball maker, Kurt! How many of you thought that he was some creepy guy who was going to try to steal Derek and Sara's Pokemon?**

**Bugsy makes an appearance too. Here's a little trivia for you guys. In the show, Bugsy's hair color is purple, while in the game, his hair color is green. Also, he has a Spinarak in the anime instead of a Kakuna, like he does in the game. Truthfully, I think the game made Bugsy look more like a girl than a guy, but that's just me.**

**Sara's Gym Battle is next chapter! Plus, Blayze is going to tell Derek and Sara what he's been up to.**

**Speaking of Blayze, I've decided that he will not be traveling with Derek and Sara, but he will be popping up a lot.**

**Also, I've got enough trainer OCs for right now. If I need any more, I'll tell you guys. I could use one or two coordinator OCs, but I could make up my own if I really need to.**

**I actually had this done yesterday, but I decided to wait until today to post it because I finished it too late.**

**And finally, please review!!!!!!!!!**


	16. Don't Bug Me

**Hello peoples! I'd like to thank Blaze-Lover, HeroGuardian, writer's block 2000, Southern Jaguar94, Cold-heart-Angel23, and megaranger23 for their reviews. Anyway, let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.**

"So Blayze, what have you been up to?" Derek asked as he sat down on one of the couches in the Pokemon Center.

"Probably the same stuff as you. Went through Union Cave, arrived in Azalea Town yesterday, and then I trained my Pokemon a little for my Gym Battle."

"So when did you catch that Sandshrew?" Sara asked.

"I caught him while I was in Union Cave. He helped me find my way out of that maze. If it wasn't for him, I don't know what I would have done."

"We got lost too, and we ended up battling these two fire breathers, who eventually lead us out of there."

"Cool, but you know that it's sort of weird that Sandshrews live in Union Cave. After all, they usually prefer dry climates, while Union Cave is damp and filled with lakes."

"Maybe they adapted, and aren't affected by water as much as regular Sandshrew." Sara suggested.

"I guess that's possible. That would actually be a good thing for me if my Sandshrew was resistant to water. We'll have to check that out later. So, anything new with you guys?"

"Not much, but I did get this," Derek said as he opened up one of the side pockets of his backpack. He reached inside, and brought out a red ribbon.

"You actually won that Contest! What is this world coming to?"

"I hear ya. I can't believe you actually kept that thing."

"It's the first thing I ever won as a trainer, so sorry if I want to keep it." Derek said, slipping the ribbon back into his bag.

"I guess you're right. After all, I wouldn't want to give up my Gym Badge." Sara said, patting the pocket of her bag where her Badge Case was stored.

"Speaking of Gym Badges, there is something that Bugsy said after my Gym Battle that's been bugging me."

"What's that?" Derek asked.

"He said 'Okay, just let me heal my Scyther at the Pokemon Center Quickly.'"

"So, what's wrong with that?"

"It means that he's going to be using his Scyther and two other Pokemon that he didn't use in the match against me."

"So I only know one Pokemon that he's going to use against me." Sara said. "What other Pokemon did he use against you?"

"A Metapod and a Spinarak. I doubt he would have used Metapod anyway, since I accidentally cracked her shell."

"So do you have a plan Sara, or are you just going to wing it?" Derek asked.

"I'm probably going to save Metapod for Scyther, but other than that, I have no idea."

A machine dinged, and Nurse Joy went over and pulled a pokeball out of it. "Bugsy, your Pokemon is healed!" She called.

Bugsy walked up and took his pokeball from Nurse Joy. "Thanks. How's Metapod doing?"

"She's going to be fine, but I would let her rest for a while if I was you."

Bugsy nodded, before turning to the three trainers who were relaxing on the couches. "Okay you guys, I'm ready!"

Derek, Sara, and Blayze stood up and walked out of the Pokemon Center with Bugsy.

* * *

"This will be a three-on-three battle between the Gym Leader Bugsy of Azalea Town and the challenger, Sara Styler from Vientown. During the battle, only the challenger will be able to make substitutions. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes," Bugsy said.

"Bring it!" Sara shouted.

"Then begin!" the referee shouted.

"First up in my bug Pokemon arsenal is Kakuna, go!"

"Go Eevee!"

Sara's Eevee appeared in front of her, while a yellow cocoon Pokemon appeared in front of Bugsy.

"What's that?" Derek asked as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Kakuna, the cocoon Pokemon. While awaiting evolution, it hides from predators under leaves and in nooks of branches." The Pokedex said.

"I remember when I had a Kakuna." Blayze said as he sat back to watch the battle.

"What happened to it?" Derek asked.

"He evolved into Beedrill."

"Eevee, let's start off with Tackle!"

"Harden," Bugsy said calmly.

Eevee charged forward as Kakuna started to glow white. Eevee slammed into him, but bounced off, doing damage to herself rather than to Kakuna.

"Now use Poison Sting!"

Kakuna unleashed a barrage of poisonous needles that sent Eevee rolling away.

"Eevee!"

Eevee shook her fur, trying to dislodge some of the poisonous barbs, before turning her attention back to Kakuna.

"Well, that didn't work, so let's use Sand-Attack!"

"Close your eyes and use Harden!"

Kakuna started to glow as Eevee whipped up a cloud of sand.

"Now use Tail Whip!"

"Keep on using Harden!"

There was a faint glowing inside the cloud, followed by a slapping sound.

"Now use Tackle!"

Eevee jumped out of the cloud, and started to run at Kakuna.

"Harden," Bugsy said.

Eevee charged into the sand cloud as Kakuna started glowing. A few seconds passed, and nothing seemed to happen. Suddenly, Kakuna came flying out of the cloud, with Eevee pushing him. Eevee kept on going, and slammed him into a tree. Kakuna groaned, before fainting.

"Kakuna is unable to battle. Eevee is the winner!" the referee said, holding up a red flag.

"How… I don't understand." Bugsy said, shocked that his Kakuna was beaten so easily.

"It was quite simple actually. I just used Tail Whip over and over again to get rid of the defensive bonuses Kakuna got from Harden. Then, Eevee slammed Kakuna into a tree. Since Kakuna don't have very high HP, he fainted."

"Interesting strategy," Bugsy said as he recalled his fallen Pokemon. "But don't think for a second that you've won. Next up is one of my favorite bug Pokemon. Ledyba, go!" Bugsy threw his pokeball, and a giant ladybug Pokemon appeared.

"What is that thing?" Derek asked as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Ledyba, the five star Pokemon. It is so timid, it can't move if it isn't with a swarm of others. It conveys its feelings with scent." The Pokedex said.

"Wait, it can't move if it isn't in a swarm? Then what good is it in a Gym Battle?" Derek asked.

"Don't be too sure," Blayze said as he looked at the Ledyba. "I don't think Bugsy would use a Pokemon that wouldn't do anything. I bet that he has trained that Ledyba to fight by herself."

"You were great Eevee, so take a little break." Sara said as she returned her Pokemon. "Mareep, show me what you can do!" Sara said as she threw her pokeball. Mareep appeared in a flash of light, already looking tired. She had a few bandages on her, and she still had burns from the explosion.

"That Mareep isn't looking to well." Blayze remarked.

"What is Sara thinking?! Mareep is supposed to be resting!"

"Are you sure you want to use that Mareep?" Bugsy asked. "She doesn't look to good."

"Positive," Sara replied.

"Alright then, use Comet Punch!"

Ledyba flew forward, and started to punch Mareep with her multiple fists. Mareep groaned, as she tried to remain conscious.

"Use Thunder Wave!"

Mareep shot a current of blue electricity at Ledyba, which paralyzed her.

"Follow up with Tackle!"

"Use Reflect Ledyba!"

Ledyba created a blue barrier around her, blocking Mareep's attack.

"Follow up with Supersonic!"

"Dodge it!" Sara yelled.

Ledyba fired high pitched sound waves at Mareep, who barely rolled out of the way of the attack.

"Now use Thundershock!"

"Light Screen!"

Mareep fired a bolt of electricity at Ledyba, who created a yellow barrier to block it.

"Now fire off another Supersonic!"

Ledyba fired another round of sound waves at Mareep, who was unable to dodge it a second time. The sound waves caused Mareep to become confused, and she started to sway back and forth.

"Finish her off with a Comet Punch!"

Ledyba started forward, only to freeze as the paralysis finally caught up with her.

"It's now or never Mareep. Use Tundershock!"

Mareep shook her head, before wildly releasing a Tundershock. There was an explosion, and the entire field was covered in smoke.

"Mareep!"

"Ledyba!"

"How many explosions can one Pokemon go through in less than twenty-four hours?" Derek asked.

When the smoke finally settled, Sara saw that both Mareep and Ledyba had been knocked out by the attack.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle." The referee said as he held up both flags.

Sara ran over to her fallen Pokemon. "You were great Mareep, return." Sara said as she recalled her Pokemon. "Blayze, Derek, could one of you guys take Mareep back over to the Pokemon Center?"

"Sure, I'll do it." Blayze said as he walked over and took the pokeball from Sara.

"Thanks," She said, before returning her attention to Bugsy, who had already recalled Ledyba.

"I don't know how that Mareep defeated my Ledyba, but now you have to face my toughest bug Pokemon! Scyther, go!"

"Eevee, come back out!"

Scyther appeared in front of Bugsy, ready to battle; while Eevee still looked a little tired from her match with Kakuna.

"There's that Scyther again." Derek said as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Scyther, the mantis Pokemon. It is nearly impossible to parry its attacking scythes. Its movements are like a ninja's." The Pokedex said.

"Scyther, start out with Fury Cutter!"

"Stop him with Sand-Attack!"

"Dodge with Double Team!"

Scyther started forward, and Eevee threw a glob of sand at him. Scyther responded by making copies of himself, dodging the Sand-Attack, and surrounding Eevee. Eevee looked around in confusion, and the real Scyther came from behind and started slashing her with his sharp claws.

"Get out of there Eevee!" Sara shouted.

"Finish her off Scyther!"

Scyther nodded, and slashed Eevee with both of his claws at once, sending her flying. Eevee landed in a heap in front of Sara and didn't move.

"Eevee is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner!" The referee said.

"You were great Eevee. Now take a nice long rest." Sara said as she recalled her Pokemon.

"What did I miss?" Blayze asked as he sat back down.

"Sara's Eevee was beaten by Scyther. What happened to you?" Derek asked when he noticed Blayze was slightly beat up himself.

Blayze shrugged. "Let's just say Nurse Joy wasn't too pleased that Sara battled with her Mareep, so she took her anger out on the messenger."

"What does that mean?"

"She beat me up because Sara took her Mareep out of the Pokemon Center before she was allowed to."

"So Sara, do you still think that you can beat my awesome Scyther?" Bugsy asked.

"Of course, and this will be the Pokemon to do it. Metapod, let's show her!"

Sara's Metapod appeared in front of her, looking bored.

"Let's finish this quickly Scyther! Use Fury Cutter!"

"Dodge it!"

Scyther tried to land a hit on Metapod, but Metapod was able to dodge every swipe of his scythes.

"Now counter with Tackle!"

"Use Double Team!"

Metapod jumped farward, trying to hit Scyther, only for him to make copies of himself, allowing him to dodge Metapod's attack.

"Now use Fury Cutter again!"

"Block with Harden!"

Metapod glowed for a few seconds, before the real Scyther flew out and started slashing at him. Thanks to the Harden, however, all of Scyther's attacks bounced off of Metapod, not doing any damage.

"Now let's try this again! Use Tackle!"

Metapod jumped forward again, this time hitting Scyther and pushing him back.

"Alright Scyther, time to raise your attack with Swords Dance!"

Scyther tucked his arms in, and started spinning in order to increase his attack.

"Now's our chance Metapod! Fire a String Shot at him!"

Metapod released a stream of thick string at Scyther. Scyther stopped spinning, and revealed that both of his arms were stuck to his body by the thick web.

"Now Tackle him Metapod!"

Metapod jumped forward, and slammed into the struggling Scyther. Scyther fell down, and started struggling to get back up.

"Now use Bug Bite!"

Metapod hopped onto Scyther. Two glowing fangs appeared where his mouth should be, and Metapod started to "bite" Scyther.

"Scyther, you have to get up!"

Scyther struggled and squirmed, but was unable to get back up.

"Let's finish this Metapod! Jump, and then come back down using Tackle!"

"Roll away Scyther!"

Metapod jumped high into the sky as he prepared to use his Tackle attack. Scyther tried to roll away, but the string on his back made him stick to the ground, and he was unable to move. All Scyther was able to do was watch and wait as Metapod reached the height of his jump, flipped, and started to fall back down to the field. Scyther closed his eyes as Metapod crashed into him, burying them both into the battlefield.

"Scyther!" Bugsy shouted as Metapod jumped off of the unconscious Pokemon.

"Scyther is unable to battle. The winners of the Azalea Town Gym Battle are Sara and Metapod!" the referee shouted.

"We won!" Sara yelled as she ran over and hugged Metapod.

"Congratulations Sara." Bugsy said as he recallled his Scyther. "As proof of defeating me and my bug Pokemon, I am proud to present you with the Hive Badge." Bugsy took a case from the referee and opened it, revealing another ladybug shaped badge.

"Alright, I won the Hive Badge!" Sara shouted as she raised the Hive Badge above her head.

"So Derek, I assume you'll want a battle with me next?" Bugsy asked.

"Sure, when do you want to battle?"

"Well, my Pokemon are pretty tired from the two battles we had today. Do you mind if we have our Gym Battle tomorrow?"

"No problem," Derek said as he, Sara, and Blayze left the Gym.

* * *

"So why did you do it?" Derek asked Sara as he sat down on his bed in his and Sara's room at the Pokemon Center.

"Do what?"

"You know, why did you use Mareep? You knew she wasn't fit for battle, yet you used her anyway. If you had asked, I'm sure Blayze or I would have lent you a Pokemon for your battle."

Sara sighed. "I would have, but I wanted to know Mareep's opinion first. After we got back to the Pokemon Center from Blayze's battle, I went and asked Mareep what she wanted to do, and we both agreed that I would use her in my Gym Battle."

"But why would Mareep agree to do something like that?"

"I think she wanted to prove that she wasn't a weakling and that she could fight through the pain and help me win my second badge. After all, since I met Mareep, she's been captured by Team Rocket, caught by me, and then beaten by a Koffing. She hadn't won a battle yet, and I don't think that she would have missed that Gym Battle for anything."

"And what about you? Why did you want to use Mareep?"

"I guess it was sort of a pride thing. I really didn't want to ask you or Blayze if I could borrow a Pokemon. I mean, I've been working with Pokemon longer than either of you, and I guess I didn't want to appear weak."

"Hey, you know Blayze and I wouldn't think any less of you just because you needed to use one of our Pokemon. We would have understood that Mareep couldn't battle."

"Thanks Derek. Now we should get some rest. After all, you have a very important match tomorrow."

"Don't remind me. I don't know how I'm going to be able to sleep tonight."

"Just don't think about it. Goodnight Derek." Sara said as she turned off the lights.

"Goodnight Sara." Derek mumbled as he lay down and tried to fall asleep.

* * *

**Let me start off by saying that I completely forgot that Mareep was in the Pokemon Center when I said that Sara's Gym Battle was this chapter. So, I had to come up with something, and you saw what the end result was.**

**Sara won the Hive Badge! Next up is Derek. Does he have what it takes to win his first badge?**

**Also, Team Rocket will appear next chapter.**

**Sara's Mareep seems to like being in explosions. First the explosion with Jolteon, then the explosion with Koffing, and now the explosion with Ledyba.**

**Also, Sara's Metapod seems to be her toughest Pokemon. After taking down Pidgey and Pidgeotto in the Violet Gym, and now Scyther in the Azalea Town Gym, he definitely has some major experience under his belt… er shell.**

**I'm hoping to have the next chapter up sometime next week. It's going to be pretty long though.**

**And finally, please review!!!!!!**


	17. The Rocket Invasion

****

Hey everybody! Okay, I'd like to thank eli W., Southern Jaguar94, Blaze-Lover, writer's block2000, and HeroGuardian for their reviews. That's about it, so…

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon!**

"Come on out everyone!" Derek shouted as he threw three Pokeballs up into the air. Cyndaquil, Pidgey, and Sentret appeared in a flash of light, and Pidgey flew over and started pecking at Derek's head.

"Stop it!" Derek cried as he tried to grab a hold of the tiny bird Pokemon. It took several minutes, but Derek finally managed to calm Pidgey down. "Alright, as you all know, we have a very important battle coming up in a few hours. We're a lot stronger than we were at the Violet City Gym, and I know you guys can win. Cyndaquil," Derek said, turning to his starter. "You'll be in charge of taking out Bugsy's two weaker Pokemon. I want you to do as much damage as you can. Pidgey," Derek turned his attention to the tiny bird Pokemon. "You'll be back up for Cyndaquil if he needs help, but you're main job is going to be to weaken, and try to take out his Scyther. Sentret," Derek turned to his last Pokemon. "You're going to be my secret weapon. I know Cyndaquil and Pidgey can take out Bugsy's first two Pokemon, but I want to save you in case they can't take out Scyther. Do you think you can handle him?" Sentret looked unsure of himself, so Derek gave him a pat on the head. "Just think of it as a Contest, and you'll do fine."

"Derek!" Somebody yelled. Derek turned, and saw Sara walking over to him. "What are you doing out here?"

"Just giving my Pokemon a little motivational speech."

"Okay, but once you're done making a fool of yourself, Blayze and I want to talk to you a little before you're Gym Battle."

"Hey!"

"I'm just kidding!"

"Fine," Derek said as he recalled his Pokemon, and walked back to the Pokemon Center with Sara.

* * *

"It's almost time," Blake mumbled. Lorvina ignored him, and continued to stare at the wall. "Are you ready to head out?"

"Yes, although I don't understand why you want a bunch of stupid townspeople hunted down."

"Ah, but that's the difference between you and me Lorvina. I don't like to take any unnecessary risks, unlike you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, let's see. On your last mission alone, you left a prisoner with a means of escape, you let two boys sneak on board, you left their pokeballs unguarded, you underestimated your opponents numerous times, and you sat back and watched instead of getting off your rear and hunting the children down yourself."

Lorvina's fingers twitched, and if it wasn't for the two guards standing near Blake, she would have strangled him.

"So that is why you're in charge of leading the grunts down to Azalea Town to trap the rest of the people there. I can't have you hanging around here doing nothing, and even if you are unable to complete your mission, it will still give us enough time to load up the airship before anyone can make it here and try to stop us."

"So you would just leave us behind!"

"Of course! If you fail in your mission, you will be left behind. If you succeed, you will be able to come with us. Of course, Goldenrod City isn't that far away, and I'm sure that you'll be able to walk there if you fail. Now, you better get going."

"Yes, _sir_." Lorvina growled as she stomped away.

* * *

"This will be a three-on-three Gym Battle between the Gym Leader, Bugsy of Azalea Town, and the challenger, Derek Aareno from New Bark Town. During the battle, only the challenger will be able to make substitutions, and the battle will be over when all three of one side's Pokemon are unable to battle. Are both trainers ready?"

"Yes," Bugsy replied. Derek nodded.

"Then begin!"

"Well Derek, since you've already seen me battle against both of your friends, I think I'll mix it up a bit with you. So come on out, Scyther!" Bugsy yelled as the green bug appeared in front of him in a flash of light.

"Well, there goes my strategy…" Derek mumbled to himself as he replaced Cyndaquil's ball back onto his belt. "I guess I'll start out with Pidgey then!" Derek said as he threw his Pokeball. Pidgey appeared, and started pecking at his head again.

"Ouch! Stop pecking at me and use Gust!" Derek cried as he pointed at Scyther. Pidgey flapped his wings, and sent a gust of wind at Scyther.

"Block it with Swords Dance!"

Scyther started spinning, and the Gust parted around him, doing no damage.

"Now go in close for a Fury Cutter!"

"Dodge with Quick Attack Pidgey!"

Scyther charged forward and started to slash at Pidgey with his scythes. Using the extra burst of speed from his Quick Attack, Pidgey was somehow able to dodge all of Scythers Fury Cutters.

"Now use Tackle!"

Pidgey dodged three more Fury Cutters before swooping down and tackling Scyther. Scyther was knocked back slightly, and Pidgey flew away, not wanting to be hit by a counter-attack.

"Good job Pidgey!" Derek shouted.

"Well then, let's take it up a notch Scyther! Take to the air!"

Scyther's wings started to vibrate, and soon, Scyther was flying towards Pidgey at an alarmingly fast rate.

"Pidgey, get out of there with Quick Attack!"

"Don't let it get away Scyther! Use Agility!"

Pidgey tried to fly away, but Scyther's greater speed boost allowed him to catch up easily.

"Now use Fury Cutter!"

Scyther started to slash at Pidgey with his scythes once again, but this time, Pidgey was unable to dodge.

"Pidgey! Try to blow him away with Gust!"

Pidgey struggled, and was barely able to flap his wings enough for a small Gust attack. It was just enough to push Scyther away slightly, and Pidgey was able to flap his wings harder, making the Gust attack stronger in the process.

"Now knock him farther back with a Quick Attack!"

Pidgey flew forward, and slammed into Scyther, knocking him back farther.

"Scyther!"

Scyther flapped his wings, and was barely able to straighten himself out before he crashed into a tree.

"Now go and use Fury Cutter!"

"Don't let him get near you Pidgey! Use Gust!"

"Double Team!"

Pidgey flapped his wings, and sent a gust of wind at Scyther, who made copies of himself to avoid the attack. The real Scyther kept on going, and started to slash at Pidgey again.

"Pidgey!"

"Let's end this Scyther. Full power!"

"Scy!" Scyther yelled as he gave one final slash, and Pidgey fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Pidgey is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner!"

"You were great Pidgey, return." Derek said as he recalled his Pokemon.

"Good work Scyther!" Bugsy said as the mantis Pokemon landed.

"Time for my secret weapon. Sentret, let's go!"

"Sentret is his secret weapon?!" Blayze said startled. "He's doomed!"

"I don't know, Derek has been training with his Sentret a lot recently." Sara told him.

"Let's start things off with Fury Cutter!"

"Dodge with Quick Attack!"

Scyther ran forward and started slashing at Sentret, but he was unable to land a hit because of Sentret's increased speed.

"Now jump back, and use Defense Curl followed by Quick Attack."

Sentret jumped away from Scyther, and curled up into a ball. He then rolled forward and slammed into Scyther, knocking him back.

"All right! Now spin and use Scratch!"

Sentret, still rolled in a ball, put both of his arms out. Three glowing claws grew from each hand, and Sentret started to spin towards Scyther.

"Dodge with Double Team!"

Scyther made copies of himself who surrounded Sentret. Sentret stopped spinning and stood up confused.

"Now go in for a Fury Cutter!"

"Defense Curl!"

Sentret tried to curl back into a ball, but Scyther was too quick, and hit Sentret before he could defend himself.

"Sentret! Try to defend yourself with Scratch!"

Three glowing claws shot out of Sentret's hands. He tried to block Scyther's repeated attacks, but the Fury Cutter was too strong, and it easily broke through his weak defenses.

"That's it! Return!" Derek shouted as he took out Sentret's Pokeball. Sentret started to glow red, and was returned.

"Well, what are you going to do now Derek?"

"How about I show you?" Derek said. He was about to throw his final Pokeball, when there was a loud bang. A few moments later, Kurt came running out of the trees, panting. He had a cut on his left cheek that was bleeding slightly, and he was also limping.

"Azalea Town is under attack!" He shouted.

"What are you talking about Kurt?" Bugsy asked.

"A bunch of people just came down from Slowpoke Well and started destroying the outskirts of town!"

"Who would want to attack us?" Bugsy asked.

"I don't know, but I think they're the reason why no one has come back from the well. We need to get out of here!"

"But what about all those people? We can't just leave them, and someone needs to make sure that they're okay." Sara said.

"I agree with Sara. Besides, I'm not going to run away like a coward. I'm going to fight!" Blayze said, already on his way to the door.

"You can't fight them off all by yourself! You're just a boy, and there are about thirty people out there!"

"Who said anything about fighting them alone?" Sara said as she stood by Blayze.

"I'll fight too! My Scyther might be a bit tired, but I still have other Pokemon." Bugsy said.

"Well, I could say no, but you guys would somehow convince me to fight, so I'll just go along with you're crazy plan." Derek said smiling slightly.

"Who else is there left in town to fight?" Blayze asked.

"The only other person in town is Nurse Joy." Kurt said.

"What about you Kurt? Will you fight?" Sara asked.

Kurt shook his head. "I'm not a fighter. My Pokemon might be skilled in forging Pokeballs, but they're not fighters either."

"Alright, enough standing around! Let's go teach those guys a lesson!" Blayze said, as he ran out of the Gym.

* * *

Lorvina kicked a Slowpoke in frustration. "How hard is it to find a few people?!" she shouted in anger. "Have you found that old man yet?"

"Not yet sir!" A grunt called back. "He just disappeared!"

"Incompetent fools…" Lorvina muttered as she kicked another Slowpoke. "They can't even catch an old man! I'm going to kill Blake for giving me these losers."

A little ways away, Blake smiled as he watched Lorvina struggle with her operation. It had been too easy for him to break into Azalea Town's security cameras.

"Sir, we are beginning to load the cargo onto the airship." A Grunt informed him.

"Good," Blake said as he stood up and walked over to the Grunt, who looked slightly uncomfortable. "What is it?" Blake asked.

"Well sir, what happens if Lorvina succeeds in her mission and brings the rest of the prisoners here? You know we will barely have enough room left on the ship for everyone inside the well. We don't have room for thirty other people."

Blake smiled. "Why do you think I sent thirty of our lowest Grunts with her? No one will miss them. In fact, a little walk to Goldenrod should be good for them, don't you agree?"

"Alright, but what about the prisoners sir? You know that they'll be able to break out of the old cages we put them in fairly easily once we leave. Our guards are the only thing that is keeping them in there."

"I guess that will be Lorvina's problem then." Blake said as he walked away.

* * *

"Alright, so how are we going to do this?" Derek asked. He, Sara, Blayze, Bugsy, and Kurt had safely made it to the Pokemon Center without being seen. Or at least, that's what they hoped.

"Can you tell us anything else about these people Kurt?" Sara asked.

"Well, they were dressed in black clothing, and they seemed to be looking for something or someone. When one of them saw me, he shouted, and about five people chased after me. Luckily, they tripped over a couple of Slowpoke, and I managed to get away."

"Anything else?"

"I don't think… Wait! They all had red R's on their clothing."

"Team Rocket." Derek mumbled.

"You know them?" Bugsy asked.

"Yeah, Sara and I ran into them in the woods outside of New Bark Town after they blew up Prof. Elm's lab. We ran into them again outside Violet City, where they kidnapped Sara. Blayze and I teamed up and helped to rescue her and a couple of other people that had also been captured."

"Those people are a part of Team Rocket?" Kurt asked.

"Do you know something about them too Kurt?" Bugsy asked.

"You bet I do. Team Rocket was a major criminal organization that operated throughout both Kanto and Johto. Last I heard, they had been run out of Johto by a couple of kids, and were struggling to keep a hold in Kanto. It seems as though they're back again."

"Now I knew who they are! I remember being warned about Team Rocket before I started out on my own journey." Bugsy said.

"So that brings me back to my original question, what are we going to do? Pidgey's in pretty bad shape, and Sentret is still tired from the Gym Battle." Derek said.

"Yeah, Scyther's pretty tired too, but I still have Kakuna, Ledyba, and Spinarak." Bugsy added.

"Mareep still needs to recover from being in two explosions, but Eevee and Metapod are fine." Sara said.

"All of my Pokemon are rested and ready to go!" Blayze said.

"So we have about nine Pokemon to fight over thirty other Pokemon, and that's assuming that each Rocket only has one each. The odds really don't look good for us." Kurt mumbled.

"Stop being so negative!" Sara said angrily.

"I'm just stating the facts."

"Guys, be quiet!" Blayze said suddenly.

"It's not my fault if you don't want to accept the truth." Kurt said.

"Seriously, be quiet! I think I hear something!" Blayze whispered.

There was movement outside the center, and a few people shouted something. A few seconds later, there was a loud bang, and the Pokemon Center shook violently. Nurse Joy stumbled out of the back door, several burns covering her body.

"They're… attacking the center!" She stammered before fainting.

"Mareep!" Sara shouted as she ran through the door that Nurse Joy had just come out of to check on her Pokemon. Derek, Blayze, and Bugsy ran after her, and Kurt helped Nurse Joy out of the way.

A few Rocket Grunts were already stumbling through a giant hole in the wall when Sara arrived at the scene.

"There's a girl! Get her!" One of the Grunts shouted when he noticed her standing there.

Three other Rocket Grunts stumbled forward through the wreckage towards Sara. Sara, meanwhile, had secretly unclipped two Pokeballs from her belt, and was about to throw them when another explosion rocked the building. Sara lost her balance, and fell. A piece of the roof cracked and fell directly above her. Luckily for Sara, a pile of rubble was next to her, and half of the piece of the roof fell on that. This made the piece of roof rest at an angle, pinning Sara to the ground, but not crushing her legs.

"Now we've got you," One of the Grunts said as he stood over her.

"I wouldn't be too sure." Sara said as she smiled at the man.

"What are you…?" The man started to say before a String Shot attack hit him, and bound his arms to his sides. The Grunt stumbled, before falling down. The rock was soon lifted away from Sara, revealing Metapod and Eevee smiling at her. The rest of the Grunts were tied up in a similar fashion, and were struggling to break free from the webbing.

"Good job you two." Sara said as she patted both of their heads. "Good thing I sent you out when they were distracted by the explosion. The piece of roof falling on me wasn't part of my plan, but it still worked."

Unknown to Sara, the Grunt that had seen her had also fallen during the second explosion, and had been hidden behind a pile of rubble when Metapod had "tied up" the other Grunts. He slowly rose from his hiding place, a Pokeball in his hand. He smiled evilly, and pulled back his arm to throw it, when a bolt of electricity suddenly hit him. He yelped, as the electricity passed through his body, causing him to drop the Pokeball. Sara instantly spun around when she heard the noise, and Metapod blasted him with a String Shot. The Grunt struggled with string, lost his balance, and fell down. Mareep stood a little ways away, panting heavily.

"Thnaks Mareep," Sara said as she walked over and patted her Pokemon on the head. "Eevee, Metapod, check and make sure we got all of the Grunts."

Eevee and Metapod nodded, and ran around the rubble, looking for any Grunts that they had missed. A few seconds later, the door burst open, and Derek and Blayze came stumbling into the room. Mareep, surprised by their sudden appearance, blasted both of them with a Thundershock. Derek yelped, and Blayze groaned, as the electricity passed through their bodies.

"It's okay Mareep," Sara said as she tried to soothe her Pokemon. "Where have you guys been?" Sara asked.

"The second explosion caused the roof to collapse in the hallway. The rubble blocked the door, and we had to get it cleared away before we could open it." Derek said. "What happened to you?"

"Oh, I just tied up a couple of Rockets, with Eevee, Metapod, and Mareep's help, of course."

"What about the other Pokemon in here?" Bugsy asked as he walked in.

"I'm not sure…" Sara said looking around. She saw a small group of Pokemon huddled in the corner of the room. "It's okay; we're not going to hurt you." Sara said as she slowly approached the injured Pokemon.

"We should probably get out of here." Bugsy said. "After all, we don't know…" Bugsy suddenly stopped, as he stared at something through the giant hole in the wall.

"What is it Bugsy?" Blayze asked.

"The Gym…" Bugsy mumbled, his eyes wide. The three other trainers looked out the giant hole, and saw that the Azalea Town Gym was engulfed in a giant pillar of flames.

* * *

"You idiots! What were you thinking?! Who tries to blow a hole in a building filled with trees?!" Lorvina screamed. The two Grunts in front of her cowered in fear.

"But, we didn't know that it would catch on fire!" One of the Grunts said.

"There's been a drought here for months! You tried to blow a hole in a building of dry trees! Anyone with half a brain would know that it would probably catch on fire!"

"But what's the big deal?" The second Grunt asked. "It's not like the Gym is important to us. And some of the other Grunts are capturing the bug-types that are trying to escape from the flames."

"Three reasons. One, the fire won't stop at the Gym, it will spread throughout the entire town, and then it could spread to the well, or Ilex Forrest. Two, what if someone from Goldenrod or Union Town see the flames? We don't want anyone to come and try to put out the fire! Team Rocket is trying to operate under the radar! And three, what if someone was in there? Your mission was to capture the rest of the people in town, not kill them! It will just put more attention on us!"

"We're sorry sir! We didn't know!"

"Just hurry up and put that fire out! And then get back to searching for the townspeople!"

* * *

"My Gym!" Bugsy moaned.

"There's nothing we can do Bugsy," Sara said sadly. "None of us have a water-type Pokemon, and we can't risk trying to put it out ourselves when there are a bunch of Rockets running around out there."

"Then what are we going to do?"

"First, we've got to take out the Rocket Grunts. After that, we'll focus on the fire." Blayze said.

"Wait, what are those Team Rocket people doing?" Derek asked.

"What do you mean?" Blayze asked.

"It looks like they're trying to put out the fire themselves!"

A bunch of Rockets had gathered around the Gym, and it looked like they were trying to put out the flames that were quickly spreading away from the Gym.

"Uh, guys? I think we have a bigger problem," Sara said. "Look," she said as she pointed at one of the Grunts. The Grunt was pointing at them and shouting. More Grunts looked over, and some started to walk towards the Pokemon Center.

"Well, it looks like there's going to be a fight after all." Blayze said as he unclipped three Pokeballs from his belt.

"Let them come." Bugsy growled. "I'll teach them what happens when you mess with a Gym Leader's Gym!"

* * *

"Admin Lorvina!" A Grunt shouted. Lorvina turned, and saw one of the Grunts running towards her.

"What is it?" She snapped.

"We've spotted a couple of kids in the Pokemon Center, and are about to apprehend them."

"Good, but keep trying to put out the fire!"

"Yes sir!" the Grunt said as he ran away to convey the news.

* * *

"Use String Shot and Supersonic!" Bugsy shouted. Kakuna and Spinarak both shot a stream of string at the Grunts and their Pokemon, while Ledyba released a blast of sound waves. Two Grunts, three Zubat, a Koffing, and an Ekans were hit and tied up by the String Shot, while the Supersonic confused two Gastly.

"Metapod, latch onto Blayze's Sandshrew with String Shot, and then use Harden."

"Sandshrew, use Rapid Spin!"

Metapod connected himself to Sandwhrew with a String Shot. Sandshrew started to spin, and sent Metapod crashing into multiple Grunts and their Pokemon, knocking out anything in his path.

"Sentret, use Scratch! Pidgey, use Gust! Cyndaquil, use Tackle!" Derek shouted. Sentret, Pidgey, and Cyndaquil launched each of their attacks, doing a good amount of damage.

"It's no use!" Blayze shouted. "They just keep coming!"

"We can't give up!" Sara shouted back.

"Arbok, use Poison Fang!"

An Arbok shot forward, her fangs glowing purple. Derek turned just in time to see the cobra Pokemon looming over him.

"Block it with Harden!" He heard Bugsy shout.

Arbok lunged at Derek, but Bugsy's Kakuna jumped in front of him, blocking the attack. Arbok bit down on Kakuna, and for a second, nothing happened. There was a cracking noise, as Arbok's fangs penetrated Kakuna's shell, cracking it in multiple places. Kakuna groaned, as he fainted from the attack.

"No!" Bugsy yelled as Arbok threw Kakuna away and hissed at Derek.

"So we meet again." A voice said. Lorvina walked forward, glaring at Derek.

"Lorvina!" Derek said, shocked.

"What, did you think that you had seen the last of me? You made me a laughing stock, and now it's time for me to take my revenge."

"Fine, if it's a battle you want, it's a battle you'll get. Cyndaquil!" Cyndaquil ran over to Derek, ready for battle.

"Start out with Poison Sting!"

"Hide in a Smokescreen!"

Arbok unleashed a barrage of poisonous needles at Cyndaquil, who hid in a cloud of black smoke.

"Now use Quick Attack!"

Cyndaquil ran out of the cloud, and slammed into Arbok.

"Counter with Poison Fang!"

Arbok lunged, and bit down on Cyndaquil with her poisonous fangs. Cyndaquil squealed as the poison entered his system. Arbok followed up by tossing Cyndaquil at Derek, who caught him in his arms.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek said as he tried to revive his Pokemon.

"This is the end! Use Poison Fang!"

Arbok lunged forward again, but suddenly stopped when a Slowpoke walked in front of her.

"What are you waiting for?! Knock that Slowpoke away with Poison Tail!"

Arbok turned, and hit Slowpoke with her glowing purple tail. Slowpoke moaned, but remained where he was. More Slowpoke walked over, and formed a wall between Derek and Lorvina. Derek looked around, and saw that a long line of Slowpoke had surrounded the Rockets.

"What's going on?" Blayze asked.

"The Slowpoke have come to save us and Azalea Town!" Bugsy said in awe.

"Why are you just standing there? Attack!" Lorvina shouted. The Grunts looked at each other, and then back at the Slowpoke, who were slowly closing in. "Fine then, Arbok, blow them away with Poison Tail!"

Arbok lunged at the nearest Slowpoke, who created a barrier around him that blocked the attack. The two Slowpoke beside him opened their mouths and yawned. The yawning suddenly became contagious, as each Slowpoke opened their mouths and yawned as well. Then, the weather started to change. Dark clouds suddenly appeared over Azalea Town, and the wind started to blow fiercely.

"What's happening?" Derek asked.

"I think they're using Rain Dance!" Sara shouted back.

Just as Sara finished speaking, there was a flash of lightning, and the clouds started pouring out rain. The flames devouring the Gym started to die down, and everyone outside was soaked in a few seconds. The Slowpoke opened their mouths again, but this time, each one was charging up a sphere of water. They each released their attacks at the same time, creating a tidal wave that washed away all of the Rockets.

"This isn't over! I'll be back!" Lorvina shouted before she too was washed away. The giant wave went all the way to the dried up riverbank, where the Rockets were then sent downstream.

"Is it over?" Blayze asked, his voice barely audible over the pounding of the rain.

"No," Derek said as he looked in the direction of Slowpoke Well.

* * *

**Well, that's it. Man, I'm tired after writing that. So ends the Rocket invasion of Azalea Town. But like Derek said, they're still not done.**

**Derek still doesn't have a Gym Badge. Who knows what would have happened if Team Rocket hadn't shown up when they did. **

**Lorvina fails again. But she did beat Derek in a battle with one attack. But then again, Cyndaquil had been battling before he battled Arbok, so he was a little tired.**

**Who knew that Slowpoke were that strong? Apparently, a lot of Water Pulses in the rain can create a tidal wave.**

**Kurt makes an appearance. Don't worry, this won't be his last.**

**This is my longest chapter yet! I hope it was worth the wait.**

**Next chapter will have the battle for Slowpoke Well, and a new OC will appear. I'll give you a hint, he has already appeared in this story once. Anyone have any ideas of who it could be?**

**Also, another new OC will appear in the chapter after that. That OC is one who was sent in by one of my reviewers.**

**And finally, please review!!!!!!**


	18. Battle for Slowpoke Well

**Hello people! Okay, I'd like to thank FOBsessed12, Blaze-Lover, Southern Jaguar94, eli W., HeroGuardian, and writer's block 2000 for their reviews. Well, that's all I have for now.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. You guys know that, right?**

"Sir, the well is filling with water rapidly. What do you want us to do?" A Grunt asked.

"Keep on loading the cargo. The rain will stop soon." Blake growled.

"But, how do you know sir?" The Grunt asked.

"First of all, never question your superiors. But since I don't have time to yell at you right now, I'll let it slide. That storm was created by a Rain Dance attack, which, as I hope you know, stops after a while. Now, I want you to round up all the troops you can. I expect we'll have some visitors before the day is done."

"Sir," the Grunt said as he saluted, then ran away to fulfill his orders.

"Dang Lorvina," Blake muttered as he continued to oversee his operation. "I didn't think you could make this an even bigger mess than it already was, but it looks like I was wrong. Now, once again, I'm going to have to clean up your mess."

* * *

"I don't believe it," Kurt said as Derek, Sara, and Blayze walked into the barely stable Pokemon Center.

"Yeah, we managed to stop Team Rocket from taking over the town and saved your but in the process. All in a day's work." Blayze said as he walked over to one of the couches and lay down.

"No, I meant that it's raining! The Slowpoke have saved us again!"

"What!" Blayze said as he accidentally rolled off the couch. He quickly jumped up and glared at Kurt. "What are we? Chopped liver? We were just about to finish them off when the Slowpoke came around and finished them off for us!"

"Really? It looked to me that you were getting beat up pretty badly out there."

"Would you two stop arguing?!" Sara shouted, ending their fight. "Blayze, Nurse Joy managed to fix the healing machine. Do you want your Pokemon healed or not?"

"So you think that just because we fought off a small army of Rockets that I, the great Blayze Flair, would need my Pokemon healed?"

"Your last name is Flair?" Derek asked. "It sounds kind of girly."

"What? So what kind of name is Aareno then? That's the weirdest last name I've ever heard."

"Would you guys stop it?! This is no time for fooling around!" Sara shouted. "Blayze, do you want your Pokemon healed or not?"

"I already told you, I don't _need_ to have my Pokemon healed, but it would be a pretty good idea if I did." He quickly added when he saw Sara glaring at him.

Kurt shook his head, before noticing someone was missing. "Hey, where's Bugsy?"

"He said that he needed to go do something, and that he would meet us back at the Center later. He gave me his Pokemon so Nurse Joy could heal them before we have to go face the rest of the Rockets at Slowpoke Well." Sara said.

"I wonder where that boy ran off to…" Kurt mumbled to himself as he looked out one of the still intact windows.

* * *

Bugsy stood in the ruins of his once proud Gym. The ceiling had completely collapsed, and part of the Gym had been burned to the ground. The other half of the Gym had been partially burned down, its walls black and crumbling. The remains of what were once trees could also be seen on that end, only now they looked more like blackened husks.

"Team Rocket will pay for this." Bugsy said, his voice shaking with anger. "They'll regret the day they ever messed with me and my Gym!"

* * *

"It looks like that rain finally stopped." A boy said as he stepped out of Union Cave. He had been on his way to Azalea Town when it had suddenly started pouring. He quickly ran back and took shelter in Union Cave as he waited for the storm to die down.

"You ready to go Totodile?" He asked his blue, alligator-like Pokemon. Totodile was happily jumping up and down in a puddle created by the recent rain. The boy laughed, and continued on his way to Azalea Town. (**A/N Anyone know who the new OC is yet?)**

* * *

"Well, it looks like we're almost ready to go." Derek said as he finished going through his bag. "All we need now is Bugsy."

As if on cue, the doors were pushed open and Bugsy walked into the Pokemon Center.

"Hey Bugsy, how are you doing?" Sara asked kindly.

"I'm not really sure." Bugsy said as he shook his head. "All I know is that I'm ready to go kick some Rocket but."

"What are we waiting around here for then? Let's go!" Blayze said, already on his way out the door.

"Wait a second!" Kurt yelled as he walked over to them.

"What is it Kurt?" Sara asked.

"I'm coming with you guys." Kurt said.

"What?!" Blayze yelled.

"But I thought you said you weren't a fighter Kurt." Derek said.

"True, but I still might be able to help. While you guys are fighting, I might be able to sneak around and free the prisoners."

"Oh great, now we have to take the grandpa ninja with us? There goes our chance of winning." Blayze moaned.

"Blayze!" Sara said, hitting the back of his head. "We would love to have you come with us Kurt."

"Are you sure Kurt?" Bugsy asked. "You saw what happened out there. It's going to be much more dangerous at Slowpoke Well."

"Now don't you worry about me. This old sack of bones can take care of himself."

"Fine then, the old man can come. Now can we get going? Please!" Blayze cried.

"Alright, alright, we're coming." Derek said. "Man, you would think we were going someplace other than an old well filled with a bunch of criminals."

* * *

"What are we doing standing out here again?" One of the Rocket Grunts asked.

"We're supposed to stop anyone who tries to enter Slowpoke Well." A second Grunt answered him. "I really don't know why though. Didn't Admin Blake send Admin Lorvina to round up the rest of the people in Azalea Town?"

"I guess Blake just wants to make sure nothing bad happens. At least we get out of moving cargo."

"Yeah, I hate to think…" The second Grunt trailed off when he heard a rustling sound coming from one of the nearby bushes. After a few seconds, a Metapod emerged, and looked at the two Rocket Grunts.

"Just a Metapod." The first Grunt mumbled before he was blasted by a String Shot attack.

"What the…?" The second Grunt said before he was also hit by a String Shot.

"Good work Metapod!" Sara said as she emerged from the bushes.

"Pod." Metapod said, sounding bored.

"Well, that was easier than I thought it would be." Derek said as he, Blayze, Bugsy, and Kurt also came out of the bushes.

"Come on, we should get going before we're seen." Kurt said as he pushed on ahead. He started walking down the stairs that led to Slowpoke Well when he suddenly tripped, and fell down the rest of the stairs.

"That's one way to go into a place filled with villains." Blayze remarked.

"Come on, we should see if he's okay." Bugsy said as he walked towards the stairs, Sara, Derek and Blayze following him.

* * *

"Sir, we've received a report from one of the guards outside. He said that three kids, an old man, and the Gym Leader were seen entering the well." A Grunt said.

"What?! Why didn't he do anything about it?! And where were the other Guards?!" Blake shouted.

"H-He said th-that the guards had b-been tied up by a S-String Shot attack, and that h-he and the other guards were t-too far away to stop them."

Blake sighed. _It seems that I've underestimated these kids. That won't happen again._

"I want a group of Grunts to intercept them, now! Tell the guards outside to cut off their escape route. We'll teach these kids what happens when you mess with Team Rocket."

* * *

"What happened here?" The boy asked as he walked through the streets of Azalea Town. Most of the houses had been damaged in some way or another, and it looked like no one had been living there for a while.

"I don't like this Totodile. Get ready for anything." He muttered.

"Toto." Totodile agreed.

The duo continued walking down the road, as they continued to look for any sign of life. After a few minutes of walking, they came upon a black, crumbling wall that formed a half circle. Multiple black spikes could be seen sticking out of the ground. The boy walked up to them, and realized that they were trees that had been partially burned down. They were even still a little warm when the boy pressed his hand against the blackened trunk.

"These were just recently burned…" The boy mumbled to himself. As he looked around, he saw other evidence to suggest that they place had recently been on fire. The dirt was still charred, with a layer of soot on it, and there were glowing cinders underneath some of the wreckage.

"I really don't like this Totodile." The boy said as he stumbled out of the debris. The two continued walking, until they came upon the Pokemon Center. A hole had been blown in the back, and part of the roof had collapsed. The front was in better shape, but it still looked unstable.

"Is there anything left in this town that hasn't been damaged?" The boy asked himself as he carefully made his way to the Pokemon Center. The sliding doors were already opened, so the boy and his Totodile cautiously stepped inside, ready for anything.

"Hello, anyone here?" the boy called.

"I'll be right there!" Someone shouted in reply. A few moments later, Nurse Joy stepped through an open doorway with an injured Kakuna in her arms. A Chansey was next to appear from the doorway. She was carrying an injured Metapod in her arms, although it looked slightly better than the Kakuna Nurse Joy had. A Mareep in bandages brought up the rear with a few baby Pokemon riding on her back.

"Hello there!" Nurse Joy said, obviously surprised to see someone else.

"Well at least I know that this town isn't deserted now. I haven't seen a person or a Pokemon since I arrived. What happened here?"

"We were attacked by a group of criminals called Team Rocket a few hours ago. They wanted to capture us for some reason, but a few young trainers and the Slowpoke managed to drive them off. They trainers left not long ago to see if they could rescue the other townspeople, who are being held captive by Team Rocket in Slowpoke Well."

"What about the Slowpoke?" the boy asked.

"The Slowpoke? They just barely left. I don't know where they all went, but I have a feeling that they went to see if they could help at Slowpoke Well."

"Well, it looks like we know where we're heading now, don't we Totodile?" the boy said as he scratched the Big Jaw Pokemon's head.

"What are you talking about?" Nurse Joy asked as the boy started to walk out of the Pokemon Center.

"We're going to help those trainers rescue the townspeople. After all, it doesn't look like there's much to do around here."

"Wait! I don't even know your name!"

"My name is Cody." The boy said as he walked out of the Center. (**A/N Anyone know who the new OC is now?)**

* * *

"Uhhhh," Kurt groaned as he tried to stand up. He managed to get onto his knees before his back snapped, and he crumpled onto the ground again.

"Kurt!" He herd someone shout, before he felt someone trying to help him sit up. After a couple of tries, they managed to do so, and Kurt was able to see Derek, Blayze, Bugsy, and Sara staring at him, the later still giving him support.

"Smooth." Blayze said before grinning. "What were you saying earlier about being able to sneak around and rescue everyone from town?"

"You're lucky I'm down here right now," Kurt grumbled. "Or else who knows what I would do."

"Can you stand?" Sara asked.

"Unfortunately, no. I hurt my back when I fell down the stairs, and now I can barely sit up."

"What are we going to do now?" Derek asked.

"Well, we can't leave Kurt behind, but we can't leave the townspeople either." Sara said.

"Great, so were just going to stand around and talk about what we can't do?" Blayze asked.

"I'll stay behind with Kurt. You guys go on ahead." Sara said.

"Uh, guys? We have visitors." Kurt said weakly as he motioned down the hallway. A group of Grunts could be seen running in their direction.

"Finally, some action!" Blaze said as he unclipped his three Pokeballs from his belt. "Houndour, Beedrill, Sandshrew, let's show them who their dealing with!"

"Spinarak, Ledyba, Scyther, go!"

"Cyndaquil, Pidgey, Sentret, let's get this over with!"

"Eevee and Metapod, help them out!"

* * *

"What's our status?" Blake asked one of the Grunts, who was carrying a large crate onto the airship.

"We've already loaded over half the boxes onto the ship sir!" the Grunt replied.

"Excellent, continue to load the cargo onto the ship. I want to get out of this hole as soon as possible."

"Sir!" the Grunt said as Blake walked away.

Blake continued to check on what other Grunts were doing, when the Grunt that had informed him of the intruders came running up to him.

"What do you want Grunt?" Blake growled.

"Sir, the force that you sent to intercept the intruders are battling them as we speak. I managed to go outside through one of the smaller side tunnels, and told the guards of the situation. They are going to cut off their escape route, just like you instructed sir!"

"Good, what's your name Grunt?"

"Jake sir!"

"Jake, eh? You are now in charge of the guard under my control. Congratulations, you have clearly shown your worth during this trial."

"Thank you sir, but I'm not a guard!" Jake said.

"So? Most of the guards were also Grunts, or still are. Besides, I need someone that I can trust will get the job done, and you have a certain quality that puts you apart from the rest of these buffoons."

"Thank you sir!"

"Now go and instruct your men."

"Sir!" Jake said as he started to walk away.

"Oh, and Jake," Jake stopped and turned to look at Blake.

"Yes sir?"

"After all this is over, be sure to punish the guards that let those interlopers through, will you?"

"Sir!"

* * *

"Houndour, use Ember! Sandshrew, use Poison Sting!" Blayze shouted. Both Pokemon launched their attacks at a Koffing. The Koffing was hit by the attacks, but quickly recovered, and started to glow. He then released a huge explosion of energy that knocked not only Houndour and Sandshrew out, but also a few of the surrounding Pokemon, including Bugsy's Ledyba, a Zubat, and a few Grimer.

"Return!" Blayze yelled as he recalled his two fainted Pokemon. "These guys are a lot tougher than the ones we fought in Azalea Town!"

"We kind of figured that out already!" Bugsy shouted back as he recalled Ledyba. "It doesn't help that they have more Pokemon than we do!"

"Don't give up!" Sara said as her Eevee used Helping Hand on Metapod. Metapod started to glow with a soft yellow aura, before he slammed into a few Zubat, his Tackle attack doing more damage than it would normally.

"Sentret, spin and use Scratch!" Derek shouted. Sentret was surrounded on all sides by Zubat, Koffing, and Grimer. Hearing Derek's command, three long glowing claws extended from both of his hands. Sentret then started to spin, pushing the Pokemon around him back.

"My back…" Kurt groaned.

"Shut up Kurt! We have bigger problems than your back at the moment." Blayze shouted.

"I think our problems just got bigger!" Bugsy shouted as a few Grunts appeared a little ways behind them, blocking the exit. "Scyther, go get them!"

"Pidgey, help Scyther out!"

"You too Beedrill!"

Scyther, Pidgey, and Beedrill all turned, and started to fly down the tunnel towards the new Grunts.

"Koffing, use Selfdestruct!" One of the new Grunts shouted as he threw his Pokeball. His Koffing appeared in a flash of light, and started to glow. He then released a huge blast of energy that not only knocked him out, but also knocked out Scyther, Pidgey, and Beedrill.

"No!" Blayze shouted.

"This is bad," Derek muttered as he and Bugsy recalled their fainted Pokemon. "Blayze doesn't have any Pokemon left, and you only have Spinarak. Plus, a lot of new Grunts just showed up."

"Things aren't looking too good for us right now." Bugsy agreed.

Cyndaquil, Sentret, Eevee, Metapod, and Spinarak all took fighting positions, ready to battle. Spinarak used String Shot to tie up the enemy Pokemon, then either Sentret or Metapod would take them out. Eevee used Helping Hand attacks to power up Sentret and Metapod, and Cyndaquil added to the confusion with Smokescreen and Tackle attacks. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. Spinarak was taken out from behind by a Wing Attack, while Cyndaquil was taken out by a Night Shade attack from a Gastly. Eevee was too busy helping Metapod and Sentret, and didn't notice the Ekans that was behind her. She was taken out by a combination of Wrap and Poison Sting, leaving Sentret and Metapod by themselves. They held out for as long as they could, but were eventually defeated, due to being greatly outnumbered by the foe's Pokemon.

* * *

"We've captured the intruders, and are about to move them to one of the holding cells inside." Jake said as he spoke into the radio.

"Good," Blake replied. "Once you're done, continue to guard the outside. I don't want any more intrusions.

"Sir!"

* * *

"Well, that didn't go how I thought it would." Blayze mumbled.

Blayze, Derek, Sara, Bugsy, and Kurt were all being led down a long hallway by the Grunts that had defeated them. Derek and Bugsy were helping to support Kurt as he struggled to walk.

"Really? And what did you think would happen? We would be able to walk right in, free the prisoners, and defeat Team Rocket without having to do anything?" Sara asked.

"Well… Yeah, I did. And what did you think would happen?"

"I thought that we would have to put up a hard fight and that we might be able to win. What I didn't count on was that the Grunts here would be this powerful."

"Quiet!" A Grunt snapped.

The group continued on their way, until they arrived in a large room. There was no roof, just a giant hole that let sunlight in. The place was swarming with Grunts, most of them carrying boxes into a large airship. One of the Grunts walked by Sara with a box that didn't have a lid on it. She looked in side, but quickly turned away, looking like she was about to be sick.

"What is it?" Derek asked.

"There are Slowpoke tails in those boxes." Sara muttered.

"That's horrible!" Bugsy exclaimed.

"What would they want with Slowpoke tails?" Blayze asked.

"My guess is that they want to sell them on the black market." Kurt grumbled weakly. "If only I was a few years younger, I'd teach these guys a lesson they wouldn't forget!"

"Quiet!" The Grunt said again, right before he was blasted by a torrent of water.

"What the…?" Another Grunt said before he was electrocuted. He collapsed onto the ground and didn't move.

A third Grunt was hit from behind by a streak of light, and fell onto another Grunt, who had also been blasted with water. They laid there for a second, before they were frozen solid.

"What's going on?" Blayze yelled as two more Grunts fell.

"I don't know, but I'm not going to just stand here!" Sara said as she threw two Pokeballs. Metapod and Eevee appeared in a flash of light, looking somewhat weak, but still ready to fight.

"Are you sure about this Sara?" Derek asked. "Our Pokemon are still pretty weak after the battle they were just in. They were all knocked out, remember?"

"So? My Pokemon are ready to fight, and we can't let an opportunity like this go to waste! It's time to fight!"

"Vee!" Eevee agreed.

"Pod." Metapod said before he started glowing. He changed shape, and became…

"Butterfree!" Sara said happily.

"Metapod just evolved!" Bugsy said.

"Butterfree, huh?" Derek said as he took out his Pokedex.

"Butterfree, the Butterfly Pokemon. It loves the honey of flowers and can locate flower patches that have even tiny amounts of pollen." The Pokedex said.

"Well, there you have it! My Pokemon are ready to fight! What about yours?"

Derek sighed, before he, Bugsy, and Blayze called out their Pokemon.

"Do you guys still want to fight?" Derek asked. Pidgey responded by pecking at his head.

"Ouch! I'll take that as a yes. What about you two?" Cyndaquil nodded his head, and Sentret sighed. "Come on Sentret, we could really use your help."

"You guys going to fight, or talk all day?" Blayze asked. Sentret responded by jumping over Derek, and charging straight into the fray.

"That answer your question?" Derek asked as Pidgey and Cyndaquil ran after Sentret.

* * *

"Butterfree, let's try Confusion!"

"Free!" Butterfree shouted before unleashing a blast of psychic energy. It hit two Grimer and an Ekans, knocking them unconscious. It kept on going, hitting two Grunts, who were blasted back by the force of the attack, and then one of the boxes of cargo, which exploded.

Sara whistled. "That was really powerful Butterfree! But next time, could you try to control it a little better."

"Yeah, because now everyone knows we're here." Bugsy said as another group of Grunts rushed over to the battle.

* * *

"What is that?" Blake shouted as he looked at the explosion and the battle going on near it.

"I believe that is an explosion sir!" One of the Grunts answered.

"Not the explosion you fool. I want to know why my men are fighting over there."

"What are we going to do sir?"

"You should keep on loading the ship. We're almost done. I'm going to go over there and see what's going on."

* * *

"I don't believe it, we're actually winning." Kurt mumbled. Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Bugsy's Pokemon were not only fending the enemy off, but also pushing them back, thanks to the unseen attackers that seemed to be helping them.

"What's going on here?!" Someone shouted. The Grunts immediately stopped fighting, and started apologizing to the man.

"Who are you?" Sara asked.

The man turned and looked at her. "My name is Blake, and I am the Admin in charge of this mission. Who are you?"

"I'm Sara Styler, and I've come to stop you and free the prisoners."

"So you're the people who have been trying to interfere with my plans?" Blake turned, and said something to the Grunts. The Grunts saluted, recalled their Pokemon, and ran off.

"What are you doing?" Sara asked.

"I'm giving you a fair fight. The five of you against me."

"Kurt doesn't have any Pokemon."

"I wasn't talking about the old man! I met the boy who's been hiding in the shadows and helping you. Why don't you come out?"

A boy emerged from the shadows with a Totodile on his shoulder. A bird and a small, human-like Pokemon also followed him out.

"Cody?!" Sara said, surprised.

"Hello Sara. I wasn't expecting to see you here." Cody said.

"Who is that guy Sara?" Derek asked.

"I met him while I was waiting for you to finish at the Pokemon Contest in Union Town. I bumped into him, and we talked for a little bit, before he had to leave for some reason."

"What are those Pokemon he has with him?" Derek asked as he held up his Pokedex.

"Totodile, the Big Jaw Pokemon. It has the habit of biting anything with its developed jaws. Even its trainer needs to be careful."

"Spearow, the Tiny Bird Pokemon. It flaps its small wings busily to fly. Using its beak, it searches in grass for prey."

"Abra, the Psi Pokemon. It sleeps for 18 hours a day. Even when awake, it teleports itself while remaining seated."

"So you remember me, eh?" Cody asked.

"Are you done yet?" Blake asked as he threw two Pokeballs. A bat with a large mouth, and a Pokemon that looked like sludge appeared in a flash of light.

"What are those things?" Derek asked as he pointed his Pokedex at the new Pokemon.

"Golbat, the Bat Pokemon. It loves the blood of humans and Pokemon. It flies around at night in search of neck veins."

"Muk, the Sludge Pokemon. A toxic fluid seeps from its body. The fluid instantly kills plants and trees on contact."

"You're only using two Pokemon against our fourteen?" Blayze asked.

"It will be more than enough." Blake said confidently.

"Let's see how you handle this. Use Ember and Poison Sting!"

Houndour shot a barrage of tiny fireballs at Blake and his Pokemon, while Beedrill and Sandshrew shot a barrage of poisonous needles.

"Golbat, use Air Cutter. Muk, use Shadow Ball."

Golbat flapped his wings, and sent a barrage of glowing, razor like projectiles. They cut through the Ember and Poison Sting attacks, and hit Blayze and his Pokemon. Houndour and Beedrill fainted from the attack, but Sandshrew managed to withstand the blast. That is, until Muk launched a black ball of energy at him, knocking him out.

"I believe I just made it two against eleven." Blake said smiling.

* * *

"That helped." Cody said as Blayze recalled his three fainted Pokemon.

"We've got to be careful." Bugsy said. "We need to work together if we have a chance to defeat him."

"My thoughts exactly." Cody said. "I want you three to attack him with any long range attacks your Pokemon know, okay?"

"What about you?" Derek asked.

"I'm going to take out his Golbat."

"But how are you…" Derek started to ask before he was cut off.

"Just trust me." Cody said.

"Alright then, Pidgey, use Gust! Cyndaquil, use Ember!"

"Butterfree, use Confusion! Eevee, use Helping Hand!"

"Spinarak, use String Shot! Ledyba, use Supersonic!"

"Use Air Cutter and Shadow Ball again!" Blake shouted.

The attacks hit each other head on, each side struggling to gain the upper hand.

"Now!" Cody shouted.

Abra grabbed a hold of Totodile and Spearow, before disappearing. They reappeared behind Golbat, and used a combination of Water Gun, Quick Attack, and Thunder Punch to floor him. The Air Cutter attack stopped, and the combined efforts of Derek, Sara, and Bugsy's Pokemon managed to overcome the Shadow Ball, and hit Muk.

"Interesting," Blake said as his Golbat got back up and Muk took a fighting stance. "But it will take a lot more than that to stop me. Golbat use…" Blake was interrupted by a Grunt who came running up and told him something.

"Well, it looks like I'll have to postpone this little match of ours." Blake said as he recalled Muk. "My ride is here."

"What are you talking about?" Sara asked before she saw the airship starting to hover. Blake and the Grunt jumped, and landed on a small platform outside the ship.

"A word of warning, if any of you cross my path again, I won't bother to hold back on you like I did this time." Blake shouted before the airship flew away.

"He got away." Derek mumbled.

"Don't worry about it Derek. I'm sure we'll have another chance to beat him." Sara said.

"Come on, let's go free the prisoners." Bugsy said.

* * *

**And so Blake manages to get away with an airship full of Slowpoke tails. At least he left the townspeople behind.**

**Cody is the new OC! If you're wondering what chapter he was in before, check out chapter thirteen for his previous appearance.**

**Sara's Metapod finally evolved. That's one Butterfree you don't want to mess with.**

**Next chapter will have another new OC, and Derek will be doing some training for his upcoming Gym Battle.**

**This is now my longest chapter! Didn't I just say that last time? Oh well, the next chapter will be shorter.**

**That should be the last that we see of Team Rocket for a while. They may make an appearance in Goldenrod, but no promises. Or they could appear in the Ilex Forrest, but again, no promises. If they do appear in Ilex Forrest, then they won't appear in Goldenrod.**

**Finally, don't forget to review!!!! Please!!!!**


	19. The Silver King

**Well, here we go again. I'd like to thank FOBsessed12, HeroGuardian, writer's block 2000, Southern Jaguar94, Blaze-Lover, and eli W. for their reviews. I'd also like to thank yomaster for his ten reviews. Well, now that that's done…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon!**

It had been over a week since Blake and the other members of Team Rocket had escaped. Derek, Sara, Blayze, Bugsy, Cody, and Kurt had found and freed the people of Azalea Town easily enough. The cages were old, and had been rusting due to the amount of water that was still left in the well during the drought. It turned out that not only were most of the townspeople imprisoned, but many traveling trainers had also been captured during Team Rocket's stay.

Everyone had gotten to work right away on rebuilding Azalea Town. After Kurt had recovered from hurting his back, he began forging different items that the people of Azalea Town required. Bugsy started working on plans for a new Gym, but it will be a long time until it is back to the way the old Gym was. Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Cody helped out where they could, but Derek was also hard at work training his Pokemon for his upcoming rematch at the Azalea Town Gym. Sara and Blayze would sometimes have a practice battle against him, but Cody would just watch as Derek got slightly better each day.

* * *

Derek, Sara, Blayze, Cody, and their Pokemon had just finished lunch, and were relaxing in one of Azalea Town's remaining parks. Cyndaquil, Sentret, Eevee, Mareep, Sandsrew, and Totodile were running around, happy to be outside. Pidgey and Spearow had gotten into a fight, and were pecking and jabbing at each other. Houndour and Abra were asleep, and Butterfree and Beedrill were relaxing in a nearby tree. Blayze was telling Derek about different battle combinations, while Sara was busy polishing her egg. Cody had a blank look on his face as he gazed at the clouds.

"Hey Sara," Blayze said suddenly. "Where did you get that egg?"

"I was wondering that too." Cody muttered, barely paying attention.

"Well, do you remember the two other people that were trapped with me on the airship?" Sara asked.

"Yeah… Jill and Jolt, right?" Blayze asked.

"Yep! Anyway, Jill was captured because she had a rare Pokemon egg that they wanted. After we saved her, she gave me the egg to take care of."

"Actually Pokemon eggs aren't as rare as everyone thinks. They're always finding eggs at the Day Care Center outside of Goldenrod City." Cody muttered, still staring at the clouds.

"Still, it's pretty cool!" Blayze said.

"Yeah…" Sara said lovingly as she put the egg back in its case.

"Anyway, I better get back to training." Derek said as he stood up.

"Wow, look at you! You must really want to win this Gym Battle." Sara said smiling.

"Well, I was beaten by Falkner, and my last match with Bugsy didn't go as well as I hoped it would. I'm going to be ready this time though. What do you say about a little practice match Blayze?"

"Sounds good to me!" Blayze said as he jumped up.

"Here they go again…" Cody said as he sat up to watch.

"Cyndaquil, you want to battle?" Derek asked. Cyndaquil nodded, and ran in front of Derek, ready to fight.

"So you're using Cyndaquil, huh? I think I'll use… Sandshrew!" Blayze said as Sandshrew walked forward.

"Alright, I'll be the referee." Sara said as she stood in between the two boys. "But remember, this is a practice match. That means no trying to slam Derek's Pokemon through another tree Blayze."

"Oh, come on! His Pidgey deserved it after the battle we had back at Union Town! They cheated!" Blayze whined. Pidgey responded by pecking at his head. Not to be outdone, Cody's Spearow also started pecking at Blayze's head.

"I told you that we didn't cheat in that battle. Pidgey just likes to peck people's heads. And apparently Spearow does too. It's not my fault if you're distracted by it." Derek mumbled as Blayze ran around screaming, trying to get the two birds away from him.

"Spearow, come back." Cody commanded. Spearow immediately stopped, and returned to his trainer.

"Pidgey, you better come back too." Derek said. Pidgey ignored him, and Derek was forced to return him to his Pokeball.

"Are you two going to battle now?" Sara asked as Blayze returned to the spot he was standing in before.

"You bet! Sandshrew, use Poison Sting!" Blayze said. Sandshrew opened his mouth, and fired poisonous needles at Cyndaquil.

"Dodge it!" Derek yelled. Cyndaquil quickly rolled out of the way, making the attack go wide. "Now use Quick Attack!"

"Block with Defense Curl!"

Sansshrew curled up into a ball, and managed to block Cyndaquil's attack.

"Now use Rapid Spin!"

Sandshrew started to spin, knocking Cyndaquil away from him.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted as his Pokemon struggled to stand back up.

"Now finish it with Rollout!" Blayze shouted. Sandshrew rolled forward, and slammed into Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil moaned in pain, as he was knocked back down again.

"That's enough!" Sara said as Cyndaquil managed to weakly stand back up. "The practice battle is over. Sandshrew is the winner!"

"Oh, come on! His Cyndaquil can still battle!" Blayze complained.

"Yes, but it was a practice battle, remember? You don't have to knock the opponent Pokemon out in a practice match!"

"You did your best Cyndaquil." Derek said as he picked up his starter Pokemon. "We'll get him next time!"

"Pathetic," Someone said. Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Cody looked around, and saw a boy with long red hair glaring at them. He was a few years older than Derek and Sara, and he looked at them as if they were inferior beings. He was wearing a zipped-up black jacket with white pants and white boots. He smirked when he saw Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Cody looking at him.

"Can we help you?" Sara asked.

"Oh, don't mind me. I'm just watching you losers train your pathetic Pokemon."

"Hey!" Blayze yelled.

"Aww, did I make you mad little boy?" the boy asked. Derek and Sara had to physically restrain Blayze in order to stop him from doing something stupid.

"What do you want?" Derek asked.

"I'm looking for someone strong to battle, although why I came to a dump like this is beyond me. Even the Gym Leader was weak. And what kind of loser Gym Leader doesn't have his own Gym?!"

"If you're looking for someone to battle, how about you fight me?" Derek asked.

"You?! Why would I want to fight a pathetic loser like you? I bet you don't even have a Gym Badge!"

"That's… none of your business." Derek mumbled.

"What? You don't have a single Gym Badge?! You really are a loser. What are you even doing out here then? Shouldn't you be back home with mommy and daddy like the baby you are?"

Derek didn't say anything. His eyes were hidden by his hair as he stared at the ground.

"Where's all that fight that was in you just a second ago?" the boy said as he walked forward. "Well, what about it? Do you still want to fight?"

"Leave him alone!" Sara shouted, still trying to hold back Blayze.

"Isn't that sweet? The loser has a girlfriend. And she seems to have more spine than you do, but that's not surprising, seeing as how you're probably the weakest trainer I've ever met.

"That's enough,"

The boy turned, and saw Cody walking up to him.

"Who are you?" the boy asked.

"My name is Cody Young. What's yours?"

The boy snorted. "Silver Kingston, now get out of my way."

"Why? Don't you want a battle?"

Silver smirked. "You think you have what it takes to take on me?"

Cody smiled. "I know I do."

"Well, we'll just see about that…"

* * *

"What's Cody thinking?!" Blayze asked. "I thought he was a coordinator!"

"But he has some pretty strong Pokemon. Don't forget that he almost took out that Golbat in Slowpoke Well." Sara said.

"True, but I have a feeling that this Silver guy means business." Blayze mumbled.

* * *

"This will be a three-on-three battle. Are you ready to go?" Silver asked.

"You may begin." Cody said.

Silver grunted. "Gastly, engage!"

"Abra, time to fight."

Silver sent out his Gastly, while Cody sent out his Abra, who had just woken up from his nap.

"Gastly, use Lick!"

"Use Thunderpunch when it gets close."

Gastly shot his tongue out at Abra, who responded by punching it with a fist crackling with electricity. Gastly shrieked as the electricity passed through his tongue and hit his body.

"Now use Ice Punch."

Abra punched Gastly's tongue again, this time his fist sparkling with an icy mist. When Abra's fist connected, part of Gastly's tongue was frozen solid, and the extra weight made him fall to the ground.

"Get up!" Silver snarled.

"Let's put him out of his misery. Use Thunderpunch again." Cody said calmly.

Abra's fist crackled with electricity as he punched Gastly's tongue for a third time. This time, the partially frozen tongue was hit back to Gastly, hitting him in the face and knocking him unconscious.

"Pathetic," Silver said as he recalled his fainted Pokemon. "How could you lose to a weak trainer like him?!"

"Good job Abra." Cody said as Abra back fell asleep.

* * *

"What just happened?" Blayze asked, startled.

"I think Cody just knocked out Silver's first Pokemon." Sara said, her eyes wide.

"He's no ordinary coordinator." Derek mumbled.

* * *

"Let's see how you do against this! Pidgeotto, engage!" Silver said as he threw his second Pokeball. Pidgeotto appeared in a flash of light.

"Return Abra. Spearow, it's your turn." Cody sent out Spearow, who squawked when he saw Pidgeotto.

"Start out with Quick Attack Pidgeotto!"

"Roll out of the way."

Pidgeotto quickly flew forward, but Spearow was able to roll the side, avoiding the attack completely.

"Now use Aerial Ace."

Spearow was surrounded by a white energy before crashing into Pidgeotto's back. Pidgeotto squawked as he tried to straighten himself out so he wouldn't crash into the ground.

"Follow up with Fury Attack."

Spearow's beak started to glow, before he jabbed at Pideotto's back repeatedly.

"Don't let that small fry win! Turn and use Gust!" Silver snarled.

Pidgeotto managed to roll and face the Tiny Bird Pokemon that was flying above him before he unleashed a strong gust of wind. Spearow squawked as he was thrown through the air and crashed into a tree. Pidgeotto smirked, before he realized that he was still falling out of the sky. A few seconds later, Pidgeotto crashed into the ground, kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

"Get up." Silver commanded.

"Are you okay Spearow?" Cody asked as Spearow flew out of the tree he had crashed into. Spearow squawked in response, before landing in front of him.

"Pidgeotto, use Quick Attack!" Silver yelled. There was a slight amount of movement in the smoke, before Pidgeotto came barreling out. Spearow squawked in surprise, before Pidgeotto crashed into him, knocking him unconscious.

Cody sighed. "You were great Spearow, return."

Silver snorted, before he recalled Pidgeotto. "I can't believe you were almost beaten by a weakling like that Spearow."

* * *

"Whoa, did you see that!?" Blayze asked.

"That was a strong Pidgeotto. I doubt Falkner's Pidgeotto would last two minutes against that thing."

"I'm surprised that Cody's little Spearow lasted for as long as he did. Are you sure that he's a coordinator?"

"Well, it looks like whoever wins this match will win the battle. May the best trainer win." Cody said calmly before taking out his final Pokeball.

"I intend to." Silver snarled.

"Totodile, it's your turn."

"Croconaw, engage!"

Cody's Totodile appeared in a flash of light doing a little dance, while a larger, more fearsome looking blue alligator appeared on Silver's side of the field.

* * *

"What's that?" Derek asked as he took out his Pokedex.

"Croconaw, the Big Jaw Pokemon. Once it bites down, it won't let go until it loses its fangs. New fangs quickly grow into place." The Pokedex said.

"This is bad," Sara said. "Cody's going up against his Totodile's evolved form."

"He's dead." Blayze said simply.

* * *

"Interesting," Cody said as he looked at the two Pokemon out on the field. "It appears that my Totodile has to fight his evolved form."

Silver grunted. "You just figured that out? Croconaw, use Water Gun!"

"Dodge it."

Croconaw fired a torrent of water at Totodile, who jumped out of the way. He then started jumping up and down, waving his arms in the air.

"Don't stop! Keep on using Water Gun!"

"Just dance."

Croconaw continued to fire blasts of water at Totodile, who jumped, spun, flipped, and danced away from each attempt.

"Excellent work Totodile, now how about a Water Gun?"

Totodile opened his jaws, and blasted Croconaw with his own torrent of water. Croconaw grunted as he was pushed back a few centimeters by the attack.

"Bite it!" Silver snarled.

"Sidestep and use your own Bite!"

Croconaw charged forward, and tried to bite down on Totodile with his large jaws. Totodile, however, was able to sidestep the attack, and bite down on Croconaw's neck. Croconaw winced as Totodile's jaws clamped down, doing a nice amount of damage.

"Now throw him."

"Toto!" Totodile said before he threw Croconaw away. He added a Water Gun attack on his own accord, which did a slight amount of damage to Croconaw. Croconaw jumped back up, looking mad.

"Destroy that Totodile with Rage!" Silver snarled, smirking.

Croconaw's eyes went red, before he charged at Totodile. Totodile tried to get out of the way, but Croconaw was too fast, and crashed into him. Croconaw then started to mercilessly attack Totodile.

* * *

"This is bad." Sara said. "Croconaw's beating Totodile up pretty badly, and if Cody attacks, Croconaw's attack power is raised because of Rage."

"What's Cody going to do?" Derek asked.

Sara shook her head. "I don't know."

* * *

"Totodile, use Water Gun to push Croconaw away from you."

Totodile opened his jaws, and blasted Croconaw with a torrent of water, pushing him back.

"Now use Scary Face to slow him down."

Totodile glared at Croconaw, which lowered his speed.

"Use Water Gun Croconaw!"

"Block with Scratch."

Croconaw unleashed a blast of water at Totodile, who slashed at the water with his glowing claws. The water sprayed around him, and glistened in the sunlight.

"Now Scratch Croconaw."

"Show him what a real Scratch looks like Croconaw!"

Both Pokemon ran towards each other, their claws glowing. They both swung their arms at the same time, Totodile hitting Croconaw on the lower jaw, and Croconaw hitting Totodile on the right side of his face. Both Pokemon stood there for a moment, before fainting at the same time.

Cody smiled as he picked up his fallen Pokemon. "You were amazing Totodile. I think you're almost ready for our next Contest.

"Pathetic," Silver said as he recalled Croconaw. "How could you lose to your pre-evolved form?"

"Hey, Croconaw did the best that he could under your orders." Cody said.

Silver snorted. "Yeah, like I need advice from a stupid coordinator like you! Get out of my way," Silver said as he roughly pushed past Cody.

"Cody!" Derek, Sara, and Blayze yelled before they surrounded him.

"That was awsome!" Blayze said, holding up his hand for a high five.

"You showed him not to mess with us." Sara said happily.

"Do you think you can show me some of those moves for my Gym Battle?" Derek asked.

"Whoa, guys! One at a time!"

"Sorry," They all said, taking a step back.

Cody chuckled. "Aw, it's alright. Now I better get my Pokemon healed before I do anything else. Then I can show you some of the combinations I used when I battled Bugsy."

"What!"

* * *

**And that seems like a pretty good place to stop. So Cody has battled Bugsy before. I wonder what that means… Actually, I already know what it means, but do you?**

**Silver Kingston belongs to FOBsessed12.**

**Silver seems pretty strong. Don't worry, this won't be the last we see of him.**

**I've put up a new poll on my profile page. Basically, it asks whether or not you want Derek and Sara to come back and talk during the author's notes, like they did in earlier chapters. If a lot of people say yes, then I'll probably bring it back, but at the beginning instead of the end. So be sure to vote on the poll, or tell me in a review. Or, you can do both, and get your vote counted twice.**

**Next chapter will have Derek training with Cody a bit, and then his rematch with Bugsy.**

**Oh, and I've got over 50,000 words now! Yippe!**

**And finally, don't forget to review!!!!!**


	20. Battling for the Badge

**Hello again! I'd like to thank FOBsessed12, Southern Jaguar94, HeroGuardian, and Blaze-Lover, for their reviews. Oh, and to yomaster for his four reviews. You guys rock!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I do take credit for the OCs that I've created.**

"What do you mean you've battled Bugsy before?!" Sara asked a little too loudly. They were sitting in the newly restored Pokemon Center waiting for Cody's Pokemon to be healed. Several people heard Sara's shout, and turned to look at what was happening.

"You might want to keep your voice down." Cody said. "After all, this is a public place."

"Sorry," Sara said, quieter than the last time. "But what do you mean that you've battled Bugsy before? I thought you were a coordinator!"

"I am," Cody said.

"I'm confused!" Blayze moaned.

Cody sighed. "Okay, maybe it might be easier to show you rather than to try to explain it."

Cody reached for his bag, and dug around for something. He then pulled out two cases: a Badge Case and a Ribbon Case.

"Take a look," Cody said as he tossed the two cases at Derek and Sara. Derek opened the Ribbon Case first, revealing two ribbons. One was light blue, while the other was a dark shade of purple. Sara opened up the Badge Case next, revealing three Gym Badges, one of which was the Hive Badge.

"So… You're a trainer and a coordinator?" Sara asked.

"Something like that, yes." Cody said as he took back both cases. "I participate in both Contests and Gym Battles."

"You can do that?" Derek asked.

"Yes, but it's much harder than just being a trainer or a coordinator. You're Pokemon need to be strong enough to win Gym Battles, but still be able to pull off amazing combinations and appeals for a Contest. There are a few good things about being both a trainer and a coordinator though. You're Pokemon tend to be more adaptable, and the countless hours of training doesn't hurt either. Plus, you tend to create a totally unique battle style that can be difficult for other trainers and coordinators to counter."

"That sounds pretty cool." Derek said.

Cody shrugged. "I guess. Now then, do you still want help with you're training?"

"You bet!" Derek said eagerly.

* * *

Cody and Derek had gone back to the park after Cody's Pokemon had been healed, and they were almost ready to begin.

"Bugsy uses five Pokemon against beginning trainers: Metapod, Kakuna, Spinarak, Ledyba, and Scyther. Since the battle will be three-on-three, you need to be prepared for anything." Cody said.

"Actually, Metapod was hurt during Blayze's battle with Bugsy, and Kakuna was hurt during the invasion." Derek said.

"Well then, we know he'll be using Spinarak, Ledyba, and Scyther."

"So, how do I beat them?"

Cody smiled. "First let me tell you what role each of them plays in Bugsy's team. Ledyba is mainly a defensive Pokemon, and is used to tire your Pokemon out. Luckily, she's not very strong, and a few powerful attacks can end the battle quickly. Spinarak will use his String Shot attack to swing from tree branches, so he's fairly hard to hit, although my Spearow managed to take him down fairly easily. Just be careful of his Scary Face and String Shot combination. As for Scyther, he's Bugsy's powerhouse. Not only is he strong, but he's also fast, and after he uses Swords Dance and Agility a few times he's almost impossible to beat."

"You're really not helping my confidence here." Derek mumbled.

"Sorry, I'm just telling it how it is. Thankfully, Scyther only knows one move that can cause damage, and that's Fury Cutter. The trick with Scyther is to dodge at least one of his Fury Cutter attacks. Even one missed swipe will cause all of his power to vanish, leaving him wide open for a counter attack. Do you get it?"

"I think so. I think I'll use Cyndaquil against Ledyba, Pidgey against Spinarak, and Sentret against Scyther. Does that sound good to you?" Derek asked.

"Just watch some of the things that I'm about to show you and you'll do fine."

* * *

Seven hours later…

Derek crawled into his room and collapsed on his bed. Sara, who had been reading a book, looked over at him.

"How'd the training go?" She asked.

"Ugh," Derek replied.

"So, not good?"

"He's strong! My Pokemon could barely touch him! And I think he was holding back!"

"So, do you think you're going to win tomorrow?"

"Honestly, I have no idea! It seems like I can't win anything lately!"

"Not this again!" Sara sighed. "Look Derek, everyone has trouble at some point. You just need to find what you're good at and go with it!"

"I guess…" Derek mumbled before he yawned. Sara laughed.

"Tired, huh?" She asked.

"More like exhausted. I'm going to get some sleep now."

"Okay, goodnight Derek."

"Night Sara…"

* * *

"This will be a three-on-three match between the Gym Leader Bugsy of Azalea Town, and the challenger, Derek Aareno from New Bark Town. During the battle, only the challenger will be able to make substitutions, and the match will be over when all three of a trainer's Pokemon are unable to battle. Are both trainers ready?" the referee asked.

"I hope you don't mind that we have to have our battle in the park Derek." Bugsy said.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Although, why I seem to always be at this park now is beyond me." Derek said.

"Well, it is one of the only places that wasn't badly damaged after the attack. So, are you ready to start?"

"I'm ready when you are." Derek said as he reached for a Pokeball.

"Well then, let's go!" Bugsy said as he grabbed one of his own Pokeballs.

"Then begin!" The referee said, waving his new flags.

"My first Pokemon will be Ledyba, go!" Bugsy shouted while throwing his Pokeball. Ledyba appeared in a flash of light in front of Bugsy.

"Cyndaquil, let's go!" Derek shouted as he threw his Pokeball and Cyndaquil appeared in a flash of light.

* * *

"Go Derek!" Sara shouted from the stands.

"You can do it!" Blayze added.

Cody said nothing. He just watched as the battle began.

* * *

"Let's start things off with a Supersonic attack!" Bugsy shouted.

"Dodge it with Quick Attack Cyndaquil!"

Ledyba blasted sound waves at Cyndaquil, who was able to dodge it thanks to the speed boost he got from the Quick Attack. Cyndaquil kept on going, and hit Ledyba, knocking her back.

"Now use Smokescreen Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil coughed up a cloud of black smoke that hid both him and Ledyba from sight.

"No go in for a Tackle attack!"

"Block with Reflect!"

A glowing blue light could be seen inside the cloud, along with the outline of what looked like Cyndaquil attacking it.

"Keep on using Tackle Cyndaquil!"

"Block every attack with Reflect Ledyba!"

* * *

"What is Derek doing?" Sara asked.

"I don't know, maybe he's trying to break through that Ledyba's shield."

Cody chuckled. "I think I know."

"What?" Both Sara and Blayze asked.

"Just watch. This battle will be over shortly."

* * *

Cyndaquil bounced off of the Reflect attack again, and started panting heavily.

"You're going to have to try something else if you want to win this battle Derek." Bugsy said smirking.

"Well, I'd say we're warmed up now, don't you Cyndaquil?"

"Quil!" Cynaquil agreed.

"Well then, let's show them not to underestimate us! Jump out of the Smokescreen and light your flames!"

Cyndaquil quickly jumped out of the Smokescreen attack and landed in front of Derek.

"Quuuuuiiiiiiiiiillllllll!" he said before his back burst into flames.

"Ember!" Derek shouted.

Cyndaquil opened his mouth, and shot a barrage of mini fireballs at the Smokescreen. The smoke instantly caught fire and exploded. Lebyba was thrown back by the explosion, her Reflect unable to stand up to the powerful force. She had fainted before she even touched the ground.

"Ledyba is unable to battle. Cyndaquil is the winner!" the referee said.

* * *

"See?" Cody asked as he looked at Sara and Blayze, who were staring at the battlefield in disbelief.

"What the… I though Cyndaquil still couldn't control his fire attacks completely!" Blayze said.

"That was one of the many things Derek and I worked on yesterday. Cyndaquil can control his fire a lot better now, but he still needs to battle a bit as a warm up in order to have full control. That's why Derek kept on using Tackle even though it wasn't doing any damage."

"You really do know your stuff." Blayze said as he went back to watching the battle.

* * *

"Well, I wasn't expecting that." Bugsy said as he recalled his fainted Ledyba. "You've improved a lot since the last time I battled you Derek."

"Thanks Bugsy." Derek said grinning.

"Let's just see how you do against my next bug Pokemon. Spinarak, come on out!"

Bugsy sent out Spinarak, who glared at Cyndaquil.

"Spinarak, huh? Let's see if my Pokedex can give me some more information…"

"Spinarak, the String Spit Pokemon. It sets a trap by spinning a web with thin but strong silk. It waits motionlessly for prey to arrive." The Pokedex said.

"That doesn't sound very good. Cyndaquil, come on back." Derek said as he recalled his Pokemon. "Pidgey, let's go!"

Pidgey appeared in a flash of light, and started pecking at Derek's head.

"Ow! Pidgey… we're in the middle of a Gym Battle!" Derek whined as he tried to grab a hold of the Tiny Bird Pokemon. He eventually managed to do so, and Pidgey started to focus on the battle at hand.

"Are you ready now?" Bugsy asked.

"You bet! Pidgey, start out with Quick Attack!"

"Use Scary Face to slow him down, and then use String Shot!"

Pidgey flew towards Spinarak at an alarmingly fast rate, only to slow down when Spinarak started glaring at him. Spinarak then launched a stream of webbing at Pidgey, who barely managed to dodge the attack.

"Don't stop Pidgey! Go in for a Tackle attack!"

"Use String Shot to dodge!"

Pidgey kept on going towards Spinarak, determined to make a hit. Spinarak readied another String Shot attack, but this time launched it at the tree branch above him rather than at Pidgey. He then quickly ran up the string, dodging the Tiny Bird Pokemon's attack.

"Keep on using Sting Shot to swing from tree to tree!"

"Follow him Pidgey!"

Pidgey desperately tried to keep up with Spinarak, who would swing from tree to tree using his String Shot like a vine, but was too slow due to the affects of Scary Face.

"Now how about a Poison Sting Spinarak!" Bugsy shouted.

Spinarak turned in mid swing and launched a barrage of poisonous needles at Pidgey.

"Blow them away with Gust!"

Pidgey flapped his wings furiously, and managed to blow the poisonous needles away from him.

"Too slow Derek! Spinarak, use String Shot!"

While Pidgey had been trying to stop the Poison Sting from hitting himself, Spinarak had swung around behind him and was ready to attack. Pidgey didn't even have time to turn before he was hit by the sticky webbing. The String Shot attack caused his left wing to be glued to his body, making him unable to move it. Unable to stay airborne, Pidgey quickly started to fall to the ground.

"Finish it with Poison Sting!" Bugsy shouted.

"Spinarak launched another barrage of poisonous needles, this time able to hit Pidgey before he crashed into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. When the dust cleared, it revealed that Pidgey was unconscious.

"Pidgey is unable to battle. Spinarak is the winner!" the referee said.

* * *

"What, already!" Blayze asked. "But Pidgey was hardly hit by any of Spinarak's attacks!"

"True, but Derek tiered out Pidgey by making him chase Spinarak around." Cody said. "Meanwhile, Spinarak still has plenty of energy left."

"I'm glad I didn't have to fight that Spinarak." Sara said.

* * *

"So are you ready to give up yet Derek?" Bugsy asked as Derek recalled his fallen Pidgey.

"Not by a long shot! Cyndaquil, come back out!"

Cyndaquil appeared in a flash of light and instantly got his flames burning again.

Bugsy grinned. "Is that supposed to scare us? Spinarak, use Poison Sting!"

"Roll to the side and use Ember!"

Spinarak launched a barrage of poisonous needles at Cyndaquil from the branch he was sitting on, only for Cyndaquil to roll to the side and blast him with an Ember attack. Spinarak screeched as he lost his balance and fell from the branch.

"Now hit him with Quick Attack Cyndaquil!"

"Stop falling by using String Shot!"

Cyndaquil started running towards the falling String Spit Pokemon, attempting to end the battle. Spinarak, though, managed to latch himself onto another branch via Sting Shot, stopping his fall.

"Don't let him get away Cyndaquil! Burn that string with Ember!"

Cyndaquil launched a barrage of mini fireballs while running that managed not only to hit the string Spinarak was holding onto, but also Spinarak himself. The weakened string snapped, sending Spinarak back down to earth. He landed awkwardly on the ground, only for a certain charging Cyndaquil to crash into him, knocking him out.

"Spinarak is unable to battle. Cyndaquil is the winner!"

"Good job Cyndaquil!"

"Cynda!" Cyndaquil said happily as he did a back flip.

* * *

"Go Cyndaquil!" Sara cheered as Bugsy recalled Spinarak.

"Derek's doing pretty good." Blayze said as he sat back to watch the rest of the match.

"Yes, he is. I just hope he can hold out until the end." Cody said as Bugsy pulled out his final Pokeball.

* * *

"So it looks like I'm down to my final Pokemon. I'm sure you'll remember this Pokemon from our last match. Scyther, time to end this!" Bugsy shouted as he threw his final Pokeball. Scyther appeared in a flash of light and glared at Cyndaquil.

"You want to keep going Cyndaquil?" Derek asked.

"Quil!" Cyndaquil said nodding his head.

"Alright, then use Ember!"

"Use Swords Dance to block!" Bugsy ordered.

Cyndaquil launched another barrage of mini fireballs as Scyther started to spin. The Ember attack hit Scyther, but bounced right off, doing no damage whatsoever.

"Uh oh, that's not good!" Derek said as Scyther stopped spinning and looked stronger than before.

"You bet it's not! Scyther, use Fury Cutter now!"

"Dodge it Cyndaquil!"

Scyther started to slash at Cyndaquil with his large scythes, only for Cyndaquil to dodge each of his attempts.

"Speed it up with Agility!"

"Don't let him hit you Cyndaquil! Use Quick Attack to dodge!"

Both Pokemon sped up, but Scyther's speed boost was greater, and each swipe of his scythes came closer and closer to hitting Cyndaquil.

Derek was struggling for an idea that would help him out. Then it hit him. "Cyndaquil, roll between Scyther's legs!"

Cyndaquil dodged a few more Fury Cutter attacks before he curled up into a ball and rolled straight through the gap between Scyther's legs

"Now use Ember from behind!"

Cyndaquil quickly turned, and blasted Scyther's back with a barrage of mini fireballs. Scyther hissed in pain as the attack burned his skin.

"Now use Tackle!"

"Scyther, turn and use Fury Cutter!"

Cyndaquil jumped and tried to Tackle Scyther, only to be knocked back when Scyther turned and hit him repeatedly with his scythes.

"Cyndaquil! Make him back off with Ember!"

Cyndaquil opened his mouth and hit Scyther with another round of fireballs, but Scyther managed to plow right through it and continued to hit Cyndaquil with Fury Cutters. Cyndaquil gave one final moan before the flame on his back went out and he fainted.

"Cyndaquil is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner!"

* * *

"Poor Cyndaquil." Sara mumbled as Derek recalled his fainted Pokemon.

"Yeah, Cyndaquil looked like he was doing a lot of damage with those fire type attacks." Blayze mumbled in agreement.

"I'm just surprised that Bugsy's Scyther was actually affected by a fire type move. He usually makes sure to dodge any fire type attacks, but Derek kept on catching him off guard and delivering a lot of damage. I'll be surprised if Scyther lasts much longer."

* * *

"Well Derek, it looks like we're both down to our last Pokemon." Bugsy said.

"And thankfully, I saved my most powerful Pokemon for last. Sentret, let's go!" Derek shouted as he threw his final Pokeball. Sentret appeared in a flash of light looking nervous.

Bugsy grinned. "Let's get started, shall we? Scyther, go in for a Fury Cutter!"

"Sentret, dodge with Quick Attack!"

Scyther ran forward and started slashing at Sentret with his sharp scythes. Sentret was able to dodge all of his attempts until he accidentally tripped on his own tail. Scyther continued to attack and Sentret was pushed back again and again by the onslaught of Fury Cutters.

"Sentret, you have to get out of there!"

"Keep it up Scyther!"

Scyther continued to push Sentret back, giving him no room to try to escape.

"Finsih him off Scyther!" Bugsy ordered. Scyther nodded and brought both arms above his head, preparing the final strike. Sentret was lying on the ground, barely conscious.

"Sentret!!!!!!!" Derek shouted as Scyther started to bring his scythes down for the final blow. Sentret closed his eyes, waiting for the final strike, but it never came. After a few more seconds, Sentret opened his eyes Scyther backing off, clutching his right side.

"Scyther?" Bugsy said, confused as to why Scyther had stopped the attack.

"Derek!" Cody shouted from the sidelines. "Cyndaquil burned Scyther and it's made it harder for him to move! Now's your chance!"

Derek nodded, coming back to his senses. "Sentret, trip Scyther up with your tail!"

Sentret spun on the floor and knocked Scyther's feet out from underneath him. Scyther gasped as he lost his balance and started to fall backwards.

"Now use Scratch!"

Three glowing claws shot out from each of Sentret's hands and Sentret started slashing at Scyther, who was still struggling to stay upright. Scyther managed to block a few of the blows with his scythes, but most of Sentret's strikes managed to hit his charred skin.

"Now spin!"

Sentret started spinning with his arms held out. He then went forward and started hitting Scyther again with his long claws, only this time it was much more powerful. Scyther managed to stay strong though, and continued to resist.

"Now finish him off with Quick Attack!!!" Derek ordered.

Sentret stopped spinning and did a back flip. When he landed on the ground, he shot forward with his claws raised.

"Scyther, stop him with Fury Cutter!" Bugsy said desperately.

Scyther raised his claws and swiped at Sentret as a last ditch attempt. Sentret dodged the first swipe, blocked the second attempt with his own claws, and continued moving forward. Scyther was unable to do anything as Sentret slashed at his charred skin before tackling him. Scyther gave one final moan before he collapsed onto the ground, defeated.

"Scyther is unable to battle. The winner of the match is Derek Aareno from New Bark Town!"

* * *

"Yeah!" Sara and Blayze shouted, jumping out of their seats to go tackle Derek. Cody smiled as he watched Derek get knocked over by his friends in surprise.

"You got lucky Derek." Cody mumbled to himself. "But then again, it never hurts to have a little luck on your side."

* * *

"Congratulations Derek." Bugsy said as he walked towards him. "You have defied the odds and defeated me in battle. I'm honored to present you with the Hive Badge and this Badge Case to store it in." Bugsy said as he handed Derek his badge and a Badge Case.

"Alright! I finally won the Hive Badge!" Derek shouted as he held his badge up for everyone to see.

* * *

**And it's about time Derek won a Badge too, don't you think? It only took him twenty chapters to do it too.**

**So it looks like Cody is a coordinator after all, but he also challenges Gyms. How many of you guys saw that coming?**

**As for the poll, it is literally tied, so I'm leaving it up until next chapter. If you haven't voted in it yet, be sure to do so!**

**I've received a couple of questions over and over again from reviewers, so I'm going to try to clarify. Derek will have a rematch against Falkner. But first, he has to go through the Ilex Forest, Goldenrod City, and some routes before he completes the loop and ends up back in Violet City.**

**Cyndaquil will not be evolving for a long time. In fact, I may choose not to evolve him at all, and just keep him as a Cyndaquil. I still haven't decided yet.**

**If I missed any questions you guys have, feel free to put it in a review.**

**Next chapter will be the start of Ilex Forest. Oh, and we'll learn a bit about Cody and Blayze's past.**

**And finally, don't forget to review!!!!!! Please?!!!!**


	21. Something's Farfetch'd Here

**Okay, before we start this chapter, I'd like to thank FOBsessed12, Blaze-Lover, Southern Jaguar94, writer's block 2000, and HeroGuardian for their reviews. I'd also like to thank yomaster for the twenty-two reviews that he sent. Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I'll explain why in the author's notes at the end.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon!**

After Derek had won his Gym Battle, he, Sara, Blayze, Cody, and Bugsy decided they would have a little celebration at the Pokemon Center. The mini party had already gone for a few hours, and it was starting to get late.

Bugsy yawned. "Man, this has been fun. Do you guys really have to go tomorrow?"

"Aww, is Bugsy going to miss us?" Sara asked making everyone laugh.

"No!" Bugsy said a little too quickly, making everyone laugh again.

"Sorry Bugsy, but we've got places to go and more Badges to win!" Blayze said.

"And Ribbons." Cody added looking at Derek.

"What?" Derek asked when Cody looked at him.

"I just want to warn you, if we ever have to face each other in a Contest, I'm not going to go easy on you."

Derek opened his mouth to day something, but was cut off by Sara.

"Well, I'm going to get to bed," she said stretching.

"Yes, I should probably get some sleep too." Cody said as he also stood up.

"And I should probably get going as well." Bugsy said also standing up.

"Well, I'm not going to bed quite yet." Blayze said as he relaxed on the couch. "What about you Derek?"

"Actually, I need to do something quickly, and then after that I'm going to hit the hay too." Derek said before he followed Sara, Cody, and Bugsy who had already left the room.

"Okay then!" Blayze called back.

* * *

The main lobby was almost deserted when Derek walked in. There were about three other trainers still in the room along with Nurse Joy, who was busy cleaning the counter that she stood behind most of the day.

He walked over to the line of video phones that trainers could use for free on their travels to call home, a Pokemon Professor, and pretty much anyone else. Derek hesitated for a moment before he dialed a number. It rang four times before a woman with long brown hair appeared on the screen.

"Derek?" she asked when she saw the boy she was talking to.

"Hi mom." Derek said.

* * *

"So Derek, what was it that you had to do before you went to sleep last night?" Sara asked as she, Derek, and Cody were waiting for Blayze in the lobby. Derek was going through his bag for a third time, making sure he had everything, while Cody was leaning against the wall, deep in thought.

Derek smiled. "I had to call my mom."

"Oh…" Sara said. "What did you guys talk about?"

"Well, I told her how I was, how my journey was going… Oh, and I had to keep on convincing her that I really was her son and not some imposter."

Sara laughed. "Yeah, you haven't talked to your mom since you left on your journey. I bet she was shocked to see you actually smiling!"

Derek smiled. "I was actually worried I would have to call an ambulance if she fainted over the phone. She said that she had watched my Contest."

"Really! I bet she was freaking out."

"I wouldn't be surprised if the whole town knew about it by now. She also asked when my next Contest would be."

"What did you say?" Sara asked.

"I told her I wasn't sure, but I'll definitely be in a Contest soon."

"So you're serious about being in Contests?" Sara asked.

Derek looked at Cody, before shrugging. "I'm not sure, but I was really good at the Union Town Pokemon Contest, and Sentret seems to really like doing them too. Who knows, maybe I'll end up like Cody and become a trainer and a coordinator."

Suddenly, Blayze came stumbling into the lobby, his bag about to burst.

"Where have you been?" Cody asked.

"Sorry! I slept in late, and I forgot to pack last night." Blayze said panting.

"Well, now that you're finally here, we should get going." Sara said.

"Then let's go!" Blayze said as he started walking to the door with Derek, Sara, and Cody following closely behind him. Blayze made his way to the double sliding glass doors, but suddenly stopped when they opened up to reveal a large crowd that was standing outside the Pokemon Center.

"What the…?" Blayze asked as Bugsy emerged from the crowd.

"Hey guys!" Bugsy said enthusiastically.

"What's going on Bugsy?" Derek asked.

"Well, we just wanted to thank you guys one last time for helping to free everyone and getting rid of Team Rocket."

"Exactly," Someone in the crowd said. The crowd parted, and Kurt could be seen walking towards the trainers with a bag in his hand.

"Hello Kurt." Sara said as the old man smiled at them.

"Hello Sara. It's good to see all of you again. Well, most of you at least…" Kurt said smirking at Blayze

"How's your back old man? You've been trying any more ninja moves out recently?" Blayze asked.

"My back is fine, thanks for asking. Now then, for the main reason I came out here today," Kurt said as he opened up the bag and brought out a black case. He opened it up, and revealed four Pokeballs sitting on a red cushion, or at least, they looked like Pokeballs. Each one had a weird design on it, and some of them were different colors than a normal Pokeball.

"What are those?" Derek asked as he looked at the weird objects.

"These," Kurt said pointing to the Pokeballs. "Are my custom made Pokeballs. Each one has a special ability that makes it different and unique, and they can catch different Pokemon easier than a normal Pokeball can in some cases.

"Cool," Blayze said.

"So, to thank you for helping out the people of Azalea Town, I'd like each of you to take one of my specially made Pokeballs.

"Sweet!" Blayze said as he grabbed the Pokeball closest to him. It was the same colors as a normal Pokeball, except for the yellow lightning shaped mark above the center button and the two yellow circles on the sides. "Thanks old man!"

Kurt snorted. "You're just lucky that I'm feeling generous today. Anyway, that's the Fast Ball. It specializes in catching extremely fast Pokemon."

"I think I'll chose this one." Sara said as she picked up a second Pokeball. It had a white bottom, like a normal Pokeball, but was blue on top with a vertical red stripe going through the center. It also had three yellow lines inside the red line.

"Ah, the Lure Ball. It specializes in catching water type Pokemon that you find while fishing."

Derek picked his Pokeball next. It was green and white, with four red dots on top, two on each side, with a single yellow dot in the center above those.

"That's a Friend Ball. The Pokemon that is caught with that will be friendlier towards his or her trainer."

"I guess that leaves me with this one." Cody said as he picked up the final Pokeball. It was yellow and white with a black triangle with a red outline on top that pointed to the center button.

"That is the Level Ball. Your chance of catching a Pokemon with that increases depending on how much more powerful your Pokemon is than the Pokemon you're trying to catch.

"Tough luck Cody." Blayze said. "Mine and Sara's Pokeballs makes powerful Pokemon easier to catch, while yours makes it easier to catch a weaker Pokemon."

Cody shrugged. "You never know what may be useful in the future."

Blayze snorted. "Whatever."

"Anyway," Sara said, stepping in between the two boys. "We should probably get going. Thanks for the Pokeballs Kurt!"

"It's the least I could do." Kurt said smiling.

"Come on Sara, we should get going." Derek said.

"Right," Sara replied as she, Derek, Blayze, and Cody started to walk away.

"Bye!" Bugsy called as he waved.

"Good luck!" Kurt added.

* * *

"So that's Ilex Forest?" Sara asked as they approached a dense area of trees outside Azalea Town.

"Yep," Cody said as he scratched Totodile's head, who was riding on his shoulder.

"Do you think we'll find any trainers in there?" Blayze asked.

"I don't know. Team Rocket probably blocked it off at some point, so who knows how many people know that you can go through it again." Cody said.

"Cody has a good point. Who knows what we might find in that forest." Sara said.

A few seconds later, a boy came running out of the forest and accidentally ran right into Derek. They both fell down, but the boy quickly got back up.

"Sorry!" the boy mumbled as Derek stood back up.

"What's the rush?" Derek asked as the boy tried to get past him.

"My Farfetch'd ran away, and I need someone to help me find him!"

"We would be happy to help." Cody offered.

"Thanks mister." The boy said, calming down a little.

"My name is Cody, and these are my friends Sara, Derek, and Blayze. What's yours?"

"My name is Sylvester." The boy said.

"Well, what are we waiting around here for?" Blayze asked. "Let's go!"

* * *

"So this is Ilex Forest, huh?" Blayze said as he, Derek, Sara, Cody, and Sylvester moved through the densely packed forest. The trees were so thick, that sunlight had a hard time reaching the forest floor. "It seems kind of creepy."

"This is the denser part of the woods. It thins out more and more the closer you get to Goldenrod City. There's also a path that leads from Azalea Town to Goldenrod that isn't as dense." Sylvester explained.

"There's a path?! What are we doing hiking around here then?!" Derek whined.

"This is the shortest way to get to the place where I was training with my Farfetch'd before he ran off." Sylvester explained.

"You seem to know your way around here pretty well Sylvester." Sara remarked.

"Well, I've lived in these woods my entire life. My dad's a Charcoal Maker, and he uses Farfetch'd to cut down the trees that he uses to make it."

"What's Charcoal?" Derek asked.

"Charcoal is a type of burnt wood that you can use as a fuel to make a fire. My dad makes different types of Charcoals, including one that raises the power of fire type attacks when you give it to your Pokemon."

"That could help out Cyndaquil." Derek muttered to himself as they continued on their way.

"Here we are," Sylvester said as they emerged in a grove of small trees.

"So this is where you get the wood you use to make Charcoal?" Sara asked.

"One of the places, yes. This was where I was training with Farfetch'd before he ran off. We were practicing Cutter attack, but it wasn't going too well. Farfetch'd wouldn't use the attack no matter how many times I told him too, and then he ran off into the forest."

"Cutter attack?" Cody asked.

"Uhh… I think you mean 'Cut' Sylvester, which might explain why Farfetch'd wouldn't listen to you."

Sylvester groaned. "I can't believe I keep on forgetting what that attack is called."

"This has happened before?" Blayze asked dryly.

"A few other times, yes. You would think that I would have learned by now."

"Don't you guys think that we should be focusing on finding Farfetch'd?" Derek asked.

"Good point." Sara said, turning back to the others. "Alright, we should send out our Pokemon to help us search."

"Good idea." Blayze said as he sent out Houndour, Beedrill, and Sandshrew.

Derek sent out Cyndaquil, Sentret, and Pidgey, Sara sent out Eevee, Butterfree, and Mareep, and Cody sent out Abra and Spearow, while Totodile jumped off his shoulder.

"Alright, we should split up." Sara said. "Butterfree, Beedrill, Pidgey, and Spearow can all fly, so they should search for Farfetch'd in the air. The rest of the Pokemon will come with us, so we can fan out and look for him. Does that sound good to you guys?"

"Sure," Blayze said.

Cody shrugged.

"What do you think about that plan Pidgey?" Derek asked. Pidgey responded by pecking at his head.

"I'll take that as a yes." Sara said. "Alright, let's move out."

* * *

After an hour of searching…

"Hey, look what I found!" Blayze shouted suddenly.

"Is it Farfetch'd?" Sylvester asked, running over.

"No, it's a Hoothoot! Doesn't it look cool?" Blayze asked pointing to an owl-like Pokemon.

Sara smacked the back of his head. "We're supposed to be looking for Sylvester's Farfetch'd, not a Hoothoot!"

"So that's a Hoothoot." Derek said, pointing his Pokedex at the round bird.

"Hoothoot, the Owl Pokemon. It always stands on one foot. Even when attacked, it does not brace itself using both feet." The Pokedex said.

"What's all the fighting about?" Cody asked as he walked over to the group. "Are we giving up on finding the Farfetch'd already?"

"We might as well." Sylvester sighed. "We're never going to be able to find him."

"Yes we will. You just have to keep on trying and not get distracted by owls." Sara said.

"But he's cute!" Blayze protested.

"Well of you think he's so cute, why don't you catch him?" Sara asked sarcastically.

"That's a great idea Sara!" Blayze said. "Alright, Houndour, come here!"

Houndour ran over to Blayze obediently, and stopped in front of his master.

"Alright Houndour, use Ember on that Hoothoot!"

Houndour inhaled, before firing off a barrage of mini fireballs at the Hoothoot, knocking him from the branch he was sitting on. Hoothoot quickly flew back up, glaring at Houndour. He then flew forward, his beak starting to glow.

"Dodge it!" Blayze shouted as Houndour sidestepped the attack. "Now use Bite!"

Houndour leapt forward and bit Hoothoot's head, causing him to moan in pain.

"Now use Smog!"

Houndour coughed up a cloud of purple gas, which made Hoothoot cough with disgust.

"Now Pokeball, go!" Blayze shouted as he threw a red-and-white sphere. It stuck Hoothoot in the forehead, before sucking him inside. I shook twice, before breaking open and releasing him. Hoothoot squawked in annoyance, before Tackling Houndour, knocking him back a little.

"Looks like you're going to have to weaken it some more if you want to catch it." Cody said from the sidelines.

Blayze grunted. "Fine, then use Ember once more Houndour!"

Houndour sent some more fireballs at Hoothoot, who flapped his wings and flew up, managing to dodge the attack. He then flew forward and Tackled Houdour again.

Houndour growled as he was pushed back again.

"Don't give up Houndour! Use Bite!"

Houndour leapt forward again, and bit down on Hoothoot's head. Hoothoot moaned as he almost lost consciousness.

"It's now or never. Pokeball, go!" Blayze shouted as he threw another Pokeball. Hoothoot was sucked inside the sphere again before it started to wiggle. It moved three times, before it pinged and became still.

"Alright, I caught Hoothoot! No Pokemon is able to resist the capture skills of Blayze Flair!" Blayze shouted as he held the Pokeball up.

"Congratulations Blayze." Derek said.

"Can we please get back to finding Farfetch'd now?" Sara asked.

A few feet away, Cody had frozen, a look of shock on his face.

_Flair! No, it can't be… But now that I think about it… But still, he's your friend… That still doesn't make up for… Maybe I should… _Cody thought, his mind swirling with questions.

"Cody… Are you okay?" Sara asked.

"Huh, what?" Cody asked, coming out of his trance.

"I asked it you were okay. You kind of zoned out there."

"Yeah, I'm okay. I just thought of something, that's all." Cody mumbled.

"Okay…" Sara said, still unconvinced. "Well, we should get back to searching for Farfetch'd now."

"Right," Blayze said as he threw a Pokeball. "Hoothoot, come on out!"

Blayze's new Hoothoot appeared in a flash of light, and looked around, confused.

"Hello Hoothoot," Blayze said as he knelt down. "I'm your new trainer!"

Hoothoot looked at him skeptically, before using Peck on Blayze's face. Blayze yelped as he fell backwards. Hoothoot chirped happily, before flying up and landing on Blayze's stomach.

"Looks like Hoothoot likes you already Blayze." Derek said.

"Oh great…" Blayze groaned as Hoothoot waved his wings in the air.

"Hoothoot," Sara said kindly. "Do you think you could help us find Sylvester's Farfetch'd?"

"Hoothoot tilted his head to the left, and then to the right, apparently thinking about something. After a few seconds, Hoothoot chirped and nodded, before hopping off into the woods.

* * *

"_Cut, chop, split, stack." _Farfetch'd chanted. "_Cut, chop, split, stack. Cut, chop, split, stack."_

Farfetch'd was busy practicing his cutting abilities, and had already made a fairly large pile of wood. Well, fairly large to a Farfetch'd anyway.

Suddenly, a round, owl-like Pokemon came hoping out of the trees and fell on his face. He quickly jumped up again, and started jumping up and down saying _"I found him! I found him!"_ over and over again.

"_What's wrong with you?"_ Farfetch'd asked, before five humans also came fumbling out of the trees.

"Farfetch'd!" Sylvester shouted as he ran over and hugged his Pokemon. Farfetch'd squirmed in his embrace, before he finally managed to break free.

"Farfetch'd?" Sylvester said confused as his Farfetch'd smacked him in the head with some sort of plant that he was holding.

"Oww! Farfetch'd, what's the matter with you?"

"Maybe the Pokedex will tell us why Farfetch'd is acting so weird…" Derek said as he pulled out his device.

"Farfetch'd, the Wild Duck Pokemon. It can't live without the stalk it holds. That's why it defends the stalk from attackers with its life." The Pokedex said.

"Well, that wasn't much help…" Derek said as he shut his Pokedex.

"Well, why is Farfetch'd mad at me then?" Sylvester asked.

"Maybe he's frustrated with you because you keep on forgetting what his attacks are called." Sara suggested.

"Is that true Farfetch'd?" Sylvester asked.

"Fetch," Farfetch'd said, folding his wings.

"Hey, why don't we have a Pokemon Battle?" Sara suggested.

"What good would that do?" Sylvester asked.

"Well, people and Pokemon usually can become closer during a battle. Plus, if you use the attacks in a battle, you might have a better chance of remembering them."

Sylvester sighed. "Fine. I know this clearing that we can have the battling in."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sara said.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, they had arrived in the clearing.

"Alright, you ready to go Sylvester?" Sara asked.

"About as ready as I'll ever be." Sylvester said, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

" Butterfree, come on out!"

"Farfetch'd, you too!"

* * *

"So who do you guys think is going to win?" Blayze asked.

"Butterfree," Cody said simply, appearing deep in thought.

"Are you serious? That Farfetch'd doesn't stand a chance." Derek said.

Blayze chuckled. "That Farfetch'd probably wouldn't have stood a chance if Butterfree was still a Caterpie."

* * *

"You can take the first move Sylvester."

"Okay… Farfetch'd, use Cutter!"

Farfetch'd turned and stared at his trainer. Sara slapped her forehead.

"It's 'Cut' Sylvester!" Sara shouted.

"Oh…right… Use Cut then Farfetch'd!"

Farfetch'd flew forward, and slashed Butterfree three times with his stalk. Butterfree gasped as he was pushed back by the attack.

"Butterfree, fight back with Confusion!"

"Farfetch'd, dodge with Aerial Jack!"

Farfetch'd looked at his trainer like he was insane before being hit by the powerful psychic type attack.

"Uh, Sylvester? I think the attack is called Aerial _Ace_ not Aerial Jack."

"Oh man! Why do I keep on forgetting what the moves are called?" Sylvester asked.

"Just keep on practicing and I'm sure you'll get the attacks down in no time."

"Okay, use Aerial _Ace_ Farfetch'd!"

Farfetch'd streaked through the air and crashed into Butterfree. Butterfree shrieked in pain as he was thrown back into a tree.

"Butterfree!" Sara shouted, concerned for her Pokemon.

Butterfree flew back up, but he was clearly in pain.

"Alright, use Gust attack Butterfree!"

"Farfetch'd, dodge and use Cutter, er, I mean, Cut!"

Butterfree flapped his wings and created a strong gust of wind. Farfetch'd managed to fly above the attack before swooping down and slashing at Butterfree with his stalk.

"Butterfree, use Bug Bite before Farfetch'd gets away!"

Butterfree's two fangs started to glow with a green light before he bit down on Farfetch'd causing him to squawk in pain.

"Use Aerial Ace Farfetch'd!" Sylvester shouted.

Farfetch'd pushed back with his wings, creating some distance between him and Butterfree. Then, he flew up, did a loop in the air, before coming back down glowing with a white aura. He slammed into Butterfree, sending the Butterfly Pokemon to the ground.

Butterfree's foot twitched a little, before he became still.

* * *

"No way…" Derek said, shocked.

"Is that even possible?" Blayze mumbled.

"Huh?" Cody said looking around. "What did I miss?"

* * *

"You were great Butterfree, now return." Sara said as she recalled her Pokemon.

"Yeah! You were awesome Farfetch'd!" Sylvester said happily as he hugged the Wild Duck Pokemon.

"That was a good battle Sylvester." Sara said, holding out her hand.

"Thanks Sara." Sylvester said, shaking her hand. "And you were right, I think that battle did make me closer to my Farfetch'd."

"You won't be forgetting the name of moves again, will you?" Sara asked.

Sylvester shook his head. "I don't think so. And if I do, I think Farfetch'd will be able to straighten me out." Sylvester said smiling.

"Well, I guess we better be on our way." Derek said.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry." Blayze said as his stomach grumbled loudly. Derek, Sara, and Sylvester all laughed as Blayze blushed out of embarrassment.

"You guys are welcome to spend the night at my house." Sylvester said.

"Are you sure?" Sara asked.

"It's the least I could do." Sylvester said.

* * *

**Well, there you have it.**

**Okay, I promised you guys an explanation for why it took so long to update, so here it is. One of my best friends moved away last week, and I wanted to spend some time with him since I wasn't going to see him again for about two years. On top of that, I had two trips that I needed to go on, and a major case of writer's block. I am really sorry that I didn't update sooner, and I will try not to do that again.**

**Oh, and while we're at it, be sure to check out 031ap's forum. It's a whole forum dedicated to the best Pokemon Tournament Stories out there, and includes a lot of great authors too, including: 031ap, AronDelBen, Blue Bongo, Dragon Master Paul, JigglypuffsPillow, Dobblazar, and a few others. To get there, just go to 031ap's profile page (His story is under my favorites.) and then click on "My Forums" at the top of the page.**

**Now that that's done, let's get on to the real Author's Notes.**

**Butterfree's first one-on-one battle since evolving and he losses! I bet a lot of you didn't see that coming. It looks like Sara is going to need some more training to get used to her new Pokemon.**

**It looks like Bugsy is going to miss his friends. I'm not sure whether or not he'll be in a future chapter or not. I didn't intend for him to become such a big character in the chapters he was in.**

**And Derek calls his mom for the first time since he started on his journey. I bet **_**that**_** would have been an interesting conversation.**

**And the appearance of four of Kurt's special Pokeballs. Anyone want to guess what Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Cody will catch with them?**

**An appearance by a rarely used Pokemon, Farfetch'd. I've got to tell you, I'm tired of spelling the word 'Farfetch'd.' I'm glad none of the main characters have one.**

**Blayze caught his fourth Pokemon! And apparently, Hoothoot are "cute."**

**And a little sneak peak at a major part of next chapter in Cody's thoughts. Is there something that happened in Blayze's past that he doesn't want anyone to know about?**

**The poll is now closed. I will now share the results with you, the readers. The question was "Should I bring back the conversations with Derek and Sara in **_**A Johto Journey**_**?" The fans have voted, and the result is………………… Where's a drum roll when you need one? Anyway, the result is two yes's and five no's, which means that I will not be bringing back the conversations. Sorry for any of you who wanted them to come back. Anyway, I have a new poll on my profile page, so go vote!**

**By the way, if it takes me a while to update, feel free to drop me a line and I'll tell you why it's taking so long. Plus, it makes me write faster.**

**I've got a lot of Author's Notes.**

**Finally, don't forget to review!!!!!!! Please!!!!**


	22. The Past, Present, and Future

**How's everybody doing? Okay, I'd like to thank Southern Jaguar94, FOBsessed12, Blaze-Lover, writer's block 2000, and HeroGuardian for their reviews. I also want to thank yomaster for his four reviews and his fifth one which made me write some more. And I also want to thank megaranger23, x, and Pokemon for their reviews for previous chapters. I know I haven't updated in a while. Like before, the explanation is at the bottom. Okay, let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, but I do own Derek, Sara, Cody, Blayze, and Lilly, plus a few others I forgot to mention.**

"Thank you for letting us stay the night, sir." Sara said, bowing at Sylvester's dad, Yosaku.

"It was no problem at all." Yosaku said. "After all, you helped my son out when he lost his Farfetch'd."

"Well, we better be on our way." Derek said.

"Wait!" Sylvester shouted as he pulled a sack over to them. "Here's some Charcoal as thanks for helping me out yesterday."

"Thanks Sylvester." Sara said, taking the bag. "Alright, let's move out!"

* * *

"So, how much more do we have to go until we reach Goldenrod City?" Sara asked. The group had already been walking for several hours, and had decided to stop and take a break for lunch.

"According to this map, we might be able to make it out of Ilex Forrest before night falls." Cody said while studying a map.

"So we have a full day of walking ahead of us? That's just great." Blayze moaned.

"We could always stop early for the night so we can get some training in for our next Gym Battles." Cody mumbled.

"That sounds good to me." Blayze said as he leaned back. Hoothoot, who had been released from his Pokeball like all the other Pokemon so they could eat, hoped over jumped on his head.

"You seem to get along with that Hoothoot pretty well Blayze." Sara said as Hoothoot started waving his wings up and down.

"Yeah, well, Hoothoot rocks! And he'll be even cooler once he evolves!"

"Speaking of evolution, what happened in that battle yesterday Sara?" Derek asked.

Sara sighed. "Unfortunately, Butterfree's defense went down a lot when he evolved, and since he is used to taking hits, he doesn't try to dodge. We've got to work on increasing his speed so he'll be able to dodge attacks better.

"The same thing happened with my Kakuna." Blayze said. "He got a lot of power and speed after evolving, but his defense wasn't as high as it was. We had to work together for a while until he finally got used to being in his new form. That's the problem with Bug Pokemon. They evolve too quickly and their forms can be so different, that they have to constantly change battle styles."

"Good thing Bugsy didn't hear you say that." Derek said, making Sara and Blayze laugh. Cody seemed to be lost in thought, as usual.

Just then, Houndour's ears perked up, and he jumped up and growled.

"What's the matter Houndour?" Blayze asked before he heard a rustling in the bushes.

"What's that?" Derek asked, hearing the rustling.

"I don't know. Hoothoot, why don't you use Foresight?"

A transparent, red beam shot out of Hoothoot's eyes and hit the rustling bush. The red beam of light allowed Derek, Sara, Blayze, and Cody to see through the bush. Before any of them could react, the Scyther jumped out and tried to attack Blayze. Luckily for him, Houndour tackled the attacking Scyther, and the two rolled around on the ground, trying to gain the upper hand.

"Houndour!" Blayze shouted. Two more Scyther jumped out of the brush and managed to knock Houndour off of the first Scyther. Houndour growled threateningly as the three Scyther started to circle him.

"Get away from my Houndour! Beedrill, use Fury Attack! Sandshrew, use Rapid Spin! Hoothoot, use Peck!"

Beedrill and Sandshrew slammed into one Scyther each, knocking them both back, while Hoothoot distracted the last Scyther by pecking at his head before Houndour tackled him.

"Those Scyther don't seem to be as tough as Bugsy's Scyther." Blayze said smiling.

"I'd like to know what a group of Scyther is doing in Ilex Forest." Sara said.

"So would I." Cody mumbled.

Blayze's Pokemon were gradually pushing the enemy Scyther back. The Scyther cried out in pain as they were burned by Houndour's Ember attack. Suddenly, ten more Scyther jumped out of the woods and started pushing Blayze's Pokemon back.

"That's not good." Derek said.

"Hey!" Blayze yelled, running at one of the Scyther. He picked up one of the pots from lunch before whacking a Scyther in the head. A small, red bump appeared on his head as he slowly turned around and glared at Blayze.

"Oh crap," Blayze mumbled as the Scyther roared, bringing the attention of the pack of Scyther on him.

The Scyther growled, before charging at Blayze. Blayze screamed as he ran away from the angry pack of Mantis Pokemon.

"Blayze!" Sara cried as the pack of Scyther turned their attention on her, Derek, and Cody.

"Oh crap." Derek said as he, Sara, and Cody all scattered.

* * *

Blayze leaned against a tree, trying to catch his breath. He had been running for over half an hour, and he was exhausted. Suddenly, the bushes around him started to rustle. Too tired to run, Blayze just stood there, waiting for whatever it was to emerge.

He was instantly relieved when Hoothoot, Beedrill, Sandshrew, and Houndour came running out of the bushes, happy to be with him again.

"Hey guys, good to see you again." He managed to say before he was tackled by his Pokemon.

"Okay, I'm fine!" Blayze managed to say as he tried to get his Pokemon off of him. He managed to do so, and hopped up from the ground.

"Alright, we should probably get going." Blayze sighed. "I wonder what happened to everyone else."

* * *

"Do you think we got away?" Derek asked Sara as he leaned against a tree, panting.

Sara shrugged. "We'll know soon enough I guess." She mumbled looking at the surrounding trees and bushes for any movement. "Do you have your Pokemon with you?"

"Yeah, I managed to recall Pidgey and Sentret before we were chased away by those Scyther, and Cyndaquil is right here," Derek said pointed at an empty space on his shoulder.

"Uhh… Derek?"

"Yeah?"

"Cyndaquil's not there." Sara mumbled. Derek looked at his shoulder and yelped, before franticly searching the around him for any sign of Cyndaquil.

"Not again!" Derek moaned as he slumped against the tree he had been leaning against.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be able to find him." Sara said encouragingly.

"Yeah, but remember the last time Cyndaquil and I were separated? He was captured by Team Rocket."

"I highly doubt that will happen again. Still, don't you think we should start looking for him?"

"Yeah, let's get going."

* * *

"Derek!" Blayze called. "Sara! Cody!"

Suddenly, Houndour growled and looked to Blayze's left. Blayze turned to look at what had made Houndour so uneasy, and saw a torrent of water coming straight at him. He barely had time to yelp before Sandshrew jumped in front of the water and parted it with a Rapid Spin.

"Who's there?" Blayze called. After a few seconds, there was a rustling in the bushes, and Cody stepped out with Totodile on his shoulder.

"Cody?! What the heck are you doing?! You nearly hit me with that Water Gun!" Blayze shouted.

Cody said nothing. He calmly threw two more Pokeballs, sending out Abra and Spearow.

Houndour growled again as Cody spoke softly. "I challenge you to a three-on-three battle Blayze."

"What are you talking about? We need to find Derek and Sara!"

"Spearow, use Aerial Ace!"

Spearow shot forward heading straight for Blayze. Blayze yelped again as Sandshrew jumped up and blocked the attack with a Defense Curl.

"Fine," Blayze spat. "If that's the way you want to play, Sandshrew, use Poison Sting!"

* * *

Cyndaquil gasped for breath. He had finally managed to outrun the Scyther that had been chasing after him ever since he had fallen off of Derek's shoulder. Unfortunately for him, that met that he was completely lost in the dark, unfamiliar forest.

"_Derek,_" Cyndaquil called, but it came out more like a whisper. "_Derek!_" He called again, slightly louder than before. He kept calling out his master's name until finally, there was a rustling in the bushes.

Cyndaquil's smile was replaced with a look of horror as a Scyther poked his head through the brush. Neither of them moved for a second, then the Scyther shouted "_Found intruder! Pray here! Come quick!_"

There was a huge amount of rustling in the brush as more and more Scyther appeared around Cyndaquil, trapping him with a bloodthirsty look on their faces.

As they slowly closed in on him, Cyndaquil desperately tried to start the flame on his back, but to no avail. Just as the lead Scyther raised his scythe to make the first strike, there was a blinding flash of white light, making the Scyther back away, shielding their eyes with their scythes.

They then watched in awe as the white light enveloped the Cyndaquil and vanished, taking Cyndaquil with it.

* * *

"Cyndaquil!" Sara called.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

"Vee!"

"Tret!"

"Maree!"

"We're never going to find him at this rate!" Derek said as he sat down on a nearby log. He, along with Sara and their Pokemon, had been searching for Cyndaquil for hours, but they still hadn't found him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find him eventually." Sara said soothingly as she also sat down. "You just have to keep looking and stay positive. Maybe Butterfree or Pidgey found something."

Derek sighed. "Pidgey probably got sidetracked by a berry tree or terrorizing some smaller Pokemon, and Butterfree still isn't used to flying."

Sara sighed as she heard a pair of wings beating in the distance. She looked up, and saw Butterfree flying towards her. He quickly landed on her head, his wings sagging, obviously tired from flying so much.

"Did you find anything Butterfree?" Sara asked. Butterfree sadly shook his head, making Sara sigh. "Oh well, I know you tried really hard to find Cyndaquil. Take a nice, long rest." Sara took out Butterfree's Pokeball and recalled him, much to Butterfree's relief.

"So now what?" Derek asked as Sara stood back up.

"We keep on looking." Sara replied.

* * *

"_Ugh, what happened?_" Cyndaquil asked as he sat up and rubbed his head.

"_You're awake._" Said a voice behind Cyndaquil, making him jump. "_Oops, sorry._"

Cyndaquil turned, and saw a green, pixie like Pokemon floating above him.

"_Who are you?_" Cyndaquil asked.

"_My name is Celebi._" She replied.

"_Okay Celebi, do you know where we are?_" Cyndaquil asked as he looked around. The trees and brush that had surrounded him moments ago had vanished, and had been replaced by huge steel buildings that were releasing black clouds of smoke into the air.

"_This is Ilex Forest._" Celebi said sadly.

"_But… I was just in Ilex Forest, and it didn't look anything like this. Where did all the spooky trees go?_"

"_All will become clear, but first, I need to show you something._" And with that, Celebi turned, and flew off to one of the steel buildings. Cyndaquil, not knowing what was going on, decided to follow her.

* * *

"Cyndaquil!" Sara called.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

"Vee!"

"Tret!"

"Maree!"

"Why do I have the feeling that we've said that before?" Sara asked.

"Because we've been saying it over and over again while looking for Cyndaquil." Derek snapped.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, I just thought that I would try to lighten up the mood a little."

Derek sighed. "Nah, I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

"Apology accepted." Sara said.

"Dgy!"

Derek and Sara turned, and say Pidgey circling above them.

"I think Pidgey found something." Sara said, excided.

"How can you tell?" Derek asked.

"Just trust me on this. After all, I am a Ranger."

Derek sighed.

"Fine," He said before recalling Sentret.

Sara also recalled Eevee and Mareep, before starting to follow Pidgey.

* * *

"Happy now?" Blayze asked as he recalled his fainted Sandshrew, Beedrill, and Houndour.

Cody grunted as he recalled Spearow and Abra.

"What is you're problem?" Blayze asked.

"Let me tell you a little story Blayze." Cody said, a slight hint of venom in his voice. "Two and a half years ago, there was a huge fire on Cinnabar Island, which consumed half of the island before it was stopped, killing over two dozen people."

Blayze had gone a deathly pale as Cody continued with his story.

"I was on vacation with my family at the time," Cody continued. "And unfortunately for us, my mother had wanted to visit Cinnabar Island. So we went, and on our last day there, the fire struck. I was relaxing on the beach at the time with my mom, while my dad and younger sister had gone to go buy something for her to eat. When the flames reared up, my mom and I were forced onto a life boat, leaving my dad and sister behind on the burning island."

"We learned what had happened a few hours later. A man by the name of Soot Valcanus Flair had gotten into a Pokemon battle with three other trainers. Now Soot had been known far and wide as one of the best fire type Pokemon trainers out there until he had been humiliated in a tournament. After that, he gave up being a trainer, and settled down on Cinnabar Island, where he raised a family of his own."

"He managed to defeat his opponents, but then went on a wild rampage. He was the one who started the fire."

"Lies," Blayze muttered. "It was the guys who started the fire. He was just trying to…"

"We found my dad a few days later." Cody said, cutting Blayze off. "He had managed to escape the fire but… My sister hadn't. She had been swallowed up by the crowd when people tried to escape. Her body was found in the burned remains."

"She's dead because of your dad Blayze."

And with that, Cody walked away, leaving a pale-faced Blayze staring at ground.

* * *

"What is that?" Derek asked, pointing to a stone structure that Pidgey had led them to.

"It looks like some kind of shrine. I wonder why it was put here."

"All I know is, it's not Cyndaquil." Derek said as he started to walk away.

"Uhh, Derek?"

"What is it now Sara?" He asked turning around to see the shrine had started glowing.

"What the…?" Derek managed to say before being blinded by the light.

"_What is this place?_" Cyndaquil asked as he and Celebi entered one of the steel buildings. There were people dressed in white lab coats everywhere, some of whom were carrying strange items that resembled parts of various Pokemon. All throughout the building were strange machines that were humming and buzzing with noise. At the far end of the building, an open doorway revealed a room full of cages of various sizes.

"_This is one of the research facilities owned by Team Rocket._" Celebi answered. "_What once was Ilex Forest is now home to one of the world's biggest Pokemon research complex in the world. They do everything here, study into forced evolution, inventing new drugs for Pokemon that will enhance their strength but shorten their life span to a few years, things like that._"

"_That's horrible!_" Cyndaquil said, shocked that people would do such a thing. "_When did this happen?_"

"_Oh, this hasn't actually happened yet, for you anyway._"

"_You mean… I'm in the future?_"

"_In simplest terms, yes, you are in one of the possible futures for our world._"

"_So you mean that there are other possible futures besides this one?_" Cyndaquil asked, relived.

"_Of course. Time is always changing, and so is the future. Right now, this is what the future holds in store. Actually, this is one of the better futures I've seen to tell you the truth._"

"_Can we do anything to change it?_" Cyndaquil asked.

"_Of course! Didn't I just say that the future is always changing? Every choice a human or Pokemon makes changes the future in some way or another. Most of the time it's small changes, but over time, those changes start to add up._"

"_So what can we do to stop this?_" Cyndaquil asked.

"_That is actually the reason that I brought you here. There will come a time in the future when Derek will become enraged, and you must stop him before he does something he will regret. Otherwise, he will… well… look for yourself._" Celebi said as she pointed to a man that was ordering the scientists around. Cyndaquil gasped as he recognized him, only this Derek was about thirty years older, and was wearing a Team Rocket Admin uniform. Behind him were two wanted posters of the adult Sara and Blayze, both of which had longer hair than their present selves, and Blayze had a long scar that went from above his left eye, across his nose, and down to the right side of his chin.

"_Derek…_" Cyndaquil mumbled sadly.

Celebi patted him softly on the head. "_I think you have seen enough._" She mumbled as a bright light enveloped both of them. In a flash, they had disappeared.

* * *

"What in the world was that?" Derek asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"I have no idea." Sara mumbled as she too tried to regain vision.

As Derek's vision slowly returned, he saw that a green, pixie like Pokemon had appeared at the foot of the shrine.

"What's that?" Derek asked as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Celebi, the Time Travel Pokemon. It has the power to travel across time, but is said to appear only in peaceful times." The Pokedex said.

The Celebi seemed to be waving at something, something with blue and cream colored fur, a large nose, squinty eyes, and four spots of yellow fur on its back.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek yelled as he ran to the Fire Mouse Pokemon.

"Quuuuuuiiiiiiiiillllllllll!" Cyndaquil shouted as he ran and jumped into Derek's arms. Celebi gave a small, knowing smile as she disappeared in another flash of white light.

* * *

**Well, that was an interesting chapter if I do say so myself.**

**Okay, second chapter in a row that I need to give an explanation of why I haven't updated in a while. I went on vacation for over a week, which was fun, but meant that I couldn't get on a computer to get on the internet for over a week, let alone type. I would have actually had this up sooner if my stupid phone line hadn't gotten messed up, which means that I couldn't get on the internet even if I wanted to, which I did.**

**I do have some good news though. I have started on the next chapter of Johto Journey already, so it won't take as long for me to update next time. Also, I have begun working on my second story, which will be called **_**The Flaming Prodigy**_**, which will feature another OC of mine, Cinder! It will hopefully be out sometime in October. I've already got the prologue done, but I also want to get some more chapters completed so I'll be able to update weekly.**

**The bad news is that school has starting up again, which means I'll have a lot more stuff to do. I hope that I'll be able to update more frequently than I did last year.**

**Anyway, onto the real author's notes.**

**So Derek might become a member of Team Rocket in the future. That is, unless Cyndaquil has something to say about it.**

**And Celebi makes an appearance! Even though it was to bring some bad news.**

**Even I feel sorry for Cody, and I'm the one who thought of his past! Poor little sister…**

**Oh, and I already know what Pokemon I want Derek to catch. I can tell you that Derek will catch one of the Pokemon on yomaster's list.**

**This chapter even had a Scyther attack! How much stuff can I fit into one chapter? I have to thank eli W. for making me come up with the idea in the first place.**

**What else… Oh yeah, I have to thank Jigglypuff's Pillow for coming up with the name Soot, even if it wasn't meant to be for Blayze's dad.**

**Next chapter will have the Day-Care center in it.**

**And finally, please review!!! Even if you're mad at me not updating sooner, you can yell at me in a review!**


	23. Day Care Battle!

**Okay, hello everybody. As usual, I'd like to thank Blaze-Lover, HeroGuardian, yomaster, Southern Jaguar94, FOBsessed12, Wild Croconaw, and dsdsd for their reviews for chapter 22. I'd also like to thank Dragon Master Paul, Wild Croconaw, and Blackwing 44 for their reviews of previous chapters, and to kyuuketsuki fang for her 15 reviews, all for previous chapters. And finally, I would also like to thank ShadowDragoon 32 for her three reviews, also for previous chapters. Man, I have a lot of people to thank…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Pretty much the same thing as every other chapter's disclaimer…**

"We're finally out of that forest!" Sara said as she and Derek stepped out of the trees and onto a dirt path which led to Goldenrod City.

"I wonder if Cody and Blayze made it out." Derek mused as the two continued on their way.

"I'm sure they did. Blayze has his Hoothoot to guide him, and Cody can teleport back to Azalea Town if he ever got lost."

"True…"

"Why are you so worried about them anyway?" Sara asked. "I mean, both of them are strong enough to take care of themselves, don't you think?"

"It's just that… I feel like something bad might have happened to them. After all, look at what happened to Cyndaquil."

"Quil," The fire type on his shoulder agreed.

Sara sighed.

"I highly doubt anything happened to them. I'm sure we'll see them again in Goldenrod City, now would you try not to be so glum?"

Derek sighed, before giving a tiny smile.

"Much better. Anyway, I've been thinking, and I realized that it's been a long time since we've battled Derek."

"So? What about it?"

"Well, I was kind of hoping that you and I could have a battle before we get to Goldenrod City. You know, as a little warm up for our Gym Battles."

"Okay," Derek said, slightly nervous. "How do you want to battle?"

"Two-on-two?"

"Fine by me."

* * *

Eventually, Derek and Sara came upon a nice, open area, where they decided to have their battle.

"Alright, Butterfree, let's go!"

"Pidgey, go!"

Both Butterfree and Pidgey appeared in a flash of light, the later going back and pecking at Derek's head.

"Would you stop that?!" Derek cried as he tried to get a hold of the Tiny Bird Pokemon.

"Butterfree, start out with Gust!"

"Pidgey, counter with your own Gust!"

The two Pokemon flapped their wings, creating two gusts of wind. The two attacks collided, neither of them giving an inch. They both eventually stopped their attacks, waiting for the other to make a move.

"Now use Sleep Powder Butterfree!" Sara said after a few seconds.

Butterfree flapped his wings again, this time sending a cloud of blue powder at Pidgey.

"Use Quick Attack to dodge!"

Pidgey quickly flew around the cloud of powder and managed to hit Butterfree, knocking him back.

"Butterfree, use Confusion to surround Pidgey with the Sleep Powder!"

Butterfree's eyes started to glow blue, and the tiny blue particles left over from the Sleep Powder also started to glow. They then started to swirl around Pidgey, making him unable to escape. Pidgey tried to resist, but eventually fell asleep.

"Now follow up with Bug Bite!"

Butterfree's two fangs started to glow a greenish color as he bit down on the sleeping Pidgey, causing him a huge amount of discomfort.

"Pidgey!"

"Now use Gust to blow him away!"

Butterfree flapped his wings again, creating another gust of wind that blew Pidgey back. As Pidgey hit the ground, his eyes flew open, and he squawked angrily at Butterfree.

"Pidgey, use Quick Attack!"

Pidgey shot forward and slammed into Butterfree. He then started to peck wildly at the Butterfly Pokemon, making him moan in pain.

"Get rid of him with Confusion!"

Butterfree's eyes glowed blue again as Pidgey was surrounded by a blue outline.

"Free!" Butterfree shouted as Pidgey was shot back onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. As it cleared, both Derek and Sara saw that Pidgey was unconscious.

"Looks like I win." Sara said as Butterfree flew over and landed on her shoulder.

"You were great Pidgey, return." Derek said as he recalled the Tiny Bird Pokemon. "Alright Cyndaquil, you're up."

"Cynda," Cyndaquil said as he jumped off of Derek's shoulder.

"Mareep, let's go!" Sara said as she threw a Pokeball. Mareep appeared in a flash of light, taking a fighting stance.

"Start out with Quick Attack Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil raced forward and tackled Mareep, pushing her back a little.

"Use Thundershock!"

Mareep charged up electricity before releasing a yellow bolt of lightning at Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil cried out in pain at the electric attack passed through his body.

"Now send him away with Tackle!"

Mareep ran forward, and hit Cyndaquil, making him roll away. Cyndaquil quickly hopped back up, ready for more.

"Let's use Smokescreen Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil coughed up a cloud of smoke that obscured him and Mareep from view.

"Be careful Mareep. You don't know where he's going to attack."

"Hit her with Quick Attack Cyndaquil!"

There came a cry of pain from the cloud, and Mareep came tumbling out.

"Now Mareep! Use Thundershock on the Smokescreen!"

Mareep unleashed a blast of electricity at the smoke, which burst into flame and exploded from the sparks.

"Looks like I win." Sara said, a smile on her face.

Derek laughed. "Are you so sure about that?"

"What are you…"

"Quuuuiiiiillllll!" A cry came from above, cutting Sara off. As she looked up, she saw Cyndaquil fall from the sky and Tackle Mareep, doing a good amount of damage.

"You forgot that Quick Attack can make you jump pretty high too."

Sara grinded her teeth. "Well then, we'll have to change that. Mareep, use Cotton Spore!"

Mareep shook her fur, and tiny pieces of it came off and attached themselves to Cyndaquil.

"What's that supposed to do?" Derek asked as Cyndaquil looked at the fur on him.

"You'll see, but first, use Thunder Wave Mareep!"

"Dodge with Quick Attack!"

Cyndaquil started to run as Mareep charged up electricity, but was a lot slower for some reason. He made it a few yards away before Mareep unleashed a blue bolt of electricity, which hit and paralyzed him.

"Cyndaquil!"

"Let's finish this Mareep! Use Thundershock!"

Mareep unleashed a yellow bolt of electricity at Cyndaquil, but a large, red and white ball rolled in front of him, blocking the attack.

"What's that?" Derek asked as he held up his Pokedex.

"Voltorb, the Ball Pokemon. It looks just like a Pokeball. It is dangerous because it may electrocute or explode on touch." The Pokedex said.

"Did it just say explode?" Sara asked nervously as the Voltorb glared at them.

"Get out of there Cyndaquil!"

Cyndaquil started to run, but his speed had been greatly lowered by the Cotton Spore and paralysis, so he was unable to get very far before the Voltorb glowed white and exploded.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek cried as he started to run towards his fainted Pokemon, but stopped when he realized that he and Sara were surrounded by a group of angry looking Voltorb.

"I see we've caught a couple of thieves." An elderly man said as he walked up the Derek and Sara. "Good work Voltorb."

"Torb," They replied in union.

"Thieves?" Derek asked.

"Uhh, excuse me sir, but I think there has been some kind of mix up. We're not thieves." Sara said.

"Then why were you two sneaking around my land?"

Sara and Derek looked at each other.

"We didn't know that this land belonged to anyone." Derek said. "We were just trying to have a battle!"

"A likely story."

"It's the truth!"

"Enough! Unless either of you have any proof that you're not thieves, I'm calling the police."

Derek and Sara looked at each other again, before Sara pulled out her Styler.

"What's that? A can opener?" The old man asked.

"No sir, it's called a Styler. It's a tool used by Pokemon Rangers so they can befriend wild Pokemon."

"And what does that have to do with anything?"

"It has my Ranger ID on it that proves that I help people and Pokemon, which would mean that I'm not a thief."

"But you could have stolen it!"

"But there's a picture of me on the ID, see?" Sara asked as a hologram of Sara appeared over the Styler.

"I still don't believe it!"

"Herald, what are you doing?" An elderly woman asked as she walked up to the old man.

"I found these two hooligans out here trying to steal the Pokemon."

The lady sighed. "Not this again. I swear, you're going to scare off business if you attack everyone who gets near the fence."

"But this time I really have caught a couple of thieves!"

"Honestly, do they look like thieves to you?"

The old man had turned red as the elderly lady looked at Derek and Sara.

"Would you two like anything to eat? I just made a batch of chocolate chip cookies."

"Uhh…, okay." Derek said as he and Sara followed the old lady.

* * *

"Wow! These cookies are delicious!" Derek exclaimed as he reached for his seventh.

"Yeah, they are. Thank you Mrs…?"

"My name is Margret, but everyone calls me the Day-Care Lady." The old woman said, smiling.

"Why's that?" Derek asked.

"Well, my husband and I run a Day-Care Center, where trainers can leave their Pokemon so that we can raise them for them."

"Why would people want to do that?" Derek asked.

"Well," The Day Care Lady began. "It's useful for trainers who want to raise more than six Pokemon at a time. Of course, it costs 100 Pokedollars per day, plus a 100 dollar start up fee."

"So that's why your husband was on the lookout for trespassers. He didn't want anyone to steal the other trainer's Pokemon." Sara said.

"Yes, although he goes a little overboard sometimes, as you saw."

"Where did your husband go anyway?" Derek asked, looking around.

"Oh, he's probably out tending to the Pokemon. It's a twenty four hour job you know."

"Sounds like hard work." Sara remarked.

"It is, but I couldn't imagine having any other job. If you want, I could give you a little tour of our facility."

"That would be great!" Derek and Sara replied at the same time.

* * *

"This is our pasture." The Day-Care Lady explained as she, Sara, and Derek walked through a giant, fenced off field. Multiple kinds of Pokemon were roaming around, sleeping, relaxing, or having a practice battle with another. There was a large lake in the center of the field, where multiple water Pokemon were swimming.

"Wow," Sara said as she looked around.

"How many Pokemon do you have right now?" Derek asked.

"Well, we've had a lot more business lately, so our numbers are a bit higher than normal. We've got 67 land based Pokemon, 49 water Pokemon, and 23 bird Pokemon."

"How do you keep track of them all?" Derek asked.

"Oh, that's the simple part. Most of them just keep inside the fence, but we have Voltorb patrolling the property, and some flying type Pokemon flying around in the sky."

"But how can you possibly have time to train each and every one?" Sara asked.

"Well, they mostly train by themselves by running around and having fun, or by challenging another to a practice match. For the weaker and younger Pokemon, we have a special training place where they can train on their own, under our supervision of course."

"Now don't be giving all of our secrets away Margey." The Day-Care Man said as he walked towards them.

"Oh, what harm will it come to?" The Day-Care Lady asked.

The Day-Care Man snorted.

"You can never be too careful with the secrets of your trade." He replied.

"Oh, stop being so paranoid."

"Hey, what's that building over there?" Sara asked as she pointed to a large, colorful building behind a large barn where she assumed the Pokemon slept.

"That? Why, that's our nursery." The Day-Care Lady replied.

"Nursery?" Derek repeated, a confused look on his face.

"Yes, our nursery. It's where we keep any eggs that we find on our property. If the trainer who's Pokemon laid it wants it, then they can take it with them. If not, then we keep it here until someone comes along who wants it."

"Pokemon Eggs?" Sara asked.

"Of course," The Day-Care man replied. "What kind of eggs do you think we were talking about? Chicken eggs?"

"No, it's just that I happen to have a Pokemon Egg with me." Sara said as she reached into her bag and pulled out her egg and its container. The Day-Care man immediately took it from her and examined it.

"I remember this egg," The Day-Care man muttered as he looked at the egg. "We found it on our property a few months ago. It was weird, because it was completely left alone, abandoned by its parents. I had never seen an egg like it before, so I decided to send it to Prof. Elm so he could analyze it."

"Did you say Prof. Elm?!" Derek asked. "I got my Cyndaquil from him when I first started out!"

"Well, that's not a big surprise. Most starting trainers in Johto get their starter from Prof. Elm." The Day-Care man said. "But how, may I ask, did you come to get this egg?"

"Well, my friend Jill gave me this egg because she felt I could take care of the baby Pokemon better than she would be able to." Sara replied, taking her egg back. "She told me that she had gotten it from the Violet City Nurse Joy, but how she ended up getting it is beyond me."

"Interesting, this egg is just full of mysteries. I would love to know what kind of Pokemon will hatch from it."

"Why don't we show them the Hatchery dear?" The Day-Care lady suggested.

The Day-Care man sighed.

"Very well, follow me…"

* * *

"Wow, this is awesome!" Derek said as he gazed upon the hatchery. There were rows upon rows of eggs. There were also two lines of machines, one on each end of the building.

"Yes, well, we certainly have plenty of eggs here." The Day-Care man said, chuckling.

"So how long does it take for an egg to hatch?" Sara asked.

"It all depends on what Pokemon it is, how well it's taken care of, whether it is traveling with a trainer, and so on."

"How long do you think it will be until my egg hatches?" Sara asked.

"Oh, I doubt it will be long now. When it starts to glow slightly, then you know it will hatch in about a day, so it would be wise to find a Pokemon Center quickly before it hatches."

Sara nodded.

"I'll be sure to remember that. So, what do those machines do?" She asked, pointing to one of the lines of machines.

"These? Oh, those are our hatching machines. You see, they monitor the progress of an egg that's about to hatch. It makes it a lot easier when you have a projected time when the egg should hatch."

"So do Pokemon Centers have those machines too?" Derek asked.

"Usually, yes, although they only tend to have one or two since only a small amount of trainers come by with eggs that are about to hatch. You're more likely to find Pokemon Centers that have hatching machines in cities rather than in the middle of the woods as well."

"What happens if an egg isn't in a hatching machine?" Sara asked.

"Well, it will hatch of course!" the Day-Care man replied. "Pokemon hatch out in the wild all the time, and nothing is ever wrong with them! The hatching machine just gives us details about the baby, like if something goes wrong during the hatching process, which rarely happens."

"Well, that's good to know." Sara said, sounding slightly relieved. She then turned to Derek. "Well, I believe we have some unfinished business to take care of."

Derek grinned.

"You ready to finish that battle?"

"Let's do it!"

* * *

"Alright Mareep, come on out!" Sara shouted, throwing her Pokeball into the air. It opened, and released Mareep in a flash of white light.

"Time to end this Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted as he too threw a Pokeball up into the air, which released Cyndaquil in a flash of white light.

Many of the Pokemon at the Day-Care stopped what they were doing, and stared at the two Pokemon that had just been released. Even the Day-Care man and the Day-Care lady looked on as the two trainers began their battle.

"Mareep, start out with Thunder Wave!" Sara shouted.

"Reee!" Mareep shouted as she sent a small blue wave of electricity straight at Cyndaquil.

"Roll out of the way!" Derek cried.

Cyndaquil quickly ducked and rolled to his left, barely avoiding the small blast of electricity.

"Now go in for a Tackle!"

"Oh no you don't. Knock him away with a Thundershock Mareep!"

Cyndaquil charged forward, aiming at Mareep. Mareep, however, just stood there, waiting. Just when it looked like Cyndaquil would hit her, Mareep suddenly unleashed a blast of electricity. Cyndaquil was hit by the blast, and was sent flying back, landing in a heap in front of Derek.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted as his Pokemon got to his feet shakily.

"Let's slow him down Mareep. Unleash a Cotton Spore attack!"

Mareep started to shake, releasing tiny balls of wool that drifted lazily over to Cyndaquil.

"Cyndaquil, try to block it with an Ember attack!"

"Quil!" Cyndaquil cried as he opened his mouth. Three tiny balls of fire were released before sizzling out. The cloud of fur then hit Cyndaquil, clinging to him and making him unable to move as fast as before.

"Try a Thunder Wave again!" Sara shouted, pointing at Cyndaquil.

Mareep smirked as she charged up another Thunder Wave attack.

"Cyndaquil, try to roll out of the way again!" Derek cried.

Mareep then unleashed a wave of blue electricity at Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil started to roll to the right, but was slower than before, and the blue electricity managed to hit his nose.

Cyndaquil squealed at the electricity coursed through his body, paralyzing him.

"Cyndaquil!"

"Now go in for a Tackle while he's immobile!" Sara shouted.

Mareep ran forward and rammed into the still sparking Cyndaquil, who was sent rolling away by the attack.

"Come on Cyndaquil, you can do it!" Derek shouted as the fire type struggled to his feet.

"Cynda," Cyndaquil grunted as he struggled to his feet. He managed to do so, and his back burst into flames.

"Crap…" Sara muttered. "Mareep, use a Thundershock."

Mareep inhaled, before sending a blast of electricity at Cyndaquil.

"Roll and use Ember!"

Cyndaquil rolled to the left, narrowly avoiding the Thundershock, and retaliated by unleashing a barrage of mini fireballs. Mareep groaned at the attack hit, burning some of her wool.

"Nice, now go in for a Quick Attack!"

"Use Thundershock!"

Cyndaquil ran forward, preparing a Tackle attack, while Mareep inhaled again, before blasting a bolt of electricity at the oncoming fire type.

"Roll out of the way Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

Cyndaquil ducked and started to roll forward, the Thundershock traveling over him. Then, the fire on Cyndaquil's back started to curl around him, covering him completely in flames. Cyndaquil continued moving forward and slammed into Mareep, knocking her away easily.

"What was that?!" Derek asked as Cyndaquil stopped rolling, the flames around him dying out.

"That was Flame Wheel," Sara said, obviously impressed. "It's basically the fire type version of a Tackle attack, except it's a lot more powerful."

"Wow, you learned a new move Cyndaquil?" Derek asked.

"Quil," Cyndaquil replied happily as he returned his attention to Mareep, who had struggled to her feet.

"Mareep, let's get back into this with a Thundershock attack!" Sara said.

"Cyndaquil, use Flame Wheel!" Derek said confidently.

Cyndaquil ran rolled forward, covering himself in flames. Mareep sent yet another blast of electricity at Cyndaquil, trying to stop his attack. Unfortunately, when the attack hit, it was absorbed into the Flame Wheel, making it even stronger. Cyndaquil then slammed into Mareep with the electrically enhanced Flame Wheel, sending her flying back again.

"Nice Cyndaquil!" Derek said smiling.

"Mareep, can you go on?" Sara asked as the Wool Pokemon struggled to her feet.

"Mar," Mareep replied, her wool sparking.

"Okay then, use Thundershock again!" Sara said, hoping she would get lucky.

"Use Flame Wheel again Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted.

Cyndaquil leapt forward, but suddenly froze, and fell to the ground covered in sparks.

"Cyndaquil!" Derek shouted as he was hit by the Thundershock attack, sending him rolling away.

"Finish him off with Tackle!" Sara cried.

Mareep charged forward and slammed into Cyndaquil, knocking him back again. He fell to the ground with a thud, and didn't move.

"Well, I think that's checkmate." Sara said.

"Are you okay Cyndaquil?" Derek asked as he picked up his battered Pokemon.

"Quil…" Cyndaquil mumbled.

"That was an excellent battle." The Day-Care man said.

"Yes, I thought Cyndaquil would win for sure. You are both very skilled trainers." The Day-Care lady added.

"In fact, would you two consider staying here and helping us train some of the Pokemon here?" The Day-Care man asked. "We would greatly appreciate it."

Derek looked at Sara, who shrugged.

"Sure, why not?" Sara replied.

* * *

Blake sat in a square room with four blank walls. There was a single rectangular table in the center with one chair at each end and two chairs on the side closest to the door. The other side of the table had no chairs, but a television was attached to the wall behind it. Four cameras were positioned in each corner of the room, leaving no blind spots in surveillance.

He grumbled as he looked at the two other people who were sitting in the room with him. A giant man with huge muscles and a shaved head stood to the left of the door with his arms crossed. He was wearing a sleeveless white shirt with a red R on it and a pair of brown cargo pants. Multiple scars crisscrossed his arms and he appeared to not have shaved, or showered for that matter, for days. He grumbled, apparently tired of waiting for something or someone.

The other man was sitting at one of the chairs on the end. He had slightly long light blue hair, and was wearing an open white lab coat that revealed a white shirt with a red R on it and a pair of brown pants. He was fidgeting uncomfortably in his seat, every so often reaching up to take off his glasses so he could clean them.

The strange assortment of men sat silently in the room, eyeing each other. Then, the silence was suddenly broken as the door was slammed open and a dripping wet and very angry Lorvina came stomping in.

"Hello Lorvina, so nice of you to join us," Blake said, slightly smirking.

"You freakin'…"

"Stop fightin'," The muscular man grumbled in a low, deep voice. Lorvina glared at him.

"Oh, so now I'm supposed to listen to a giant talking meat bag with the brain the size of a raisin." She growled.

"Looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Blake mused as Lorvina turned around and jabbed him with her finger.

"And you! I was washed down a freakin' river by a bunch of pee-brained Slowpokes, and when I finally managed to get back to our base, you were gone! You left me there with a bunch of low-ranking Grunts and no way to get in touch with the rest of Team Rocket!"

"Oh, so you didn't have your transmitter with you then?" Blake asked. "Because you know that you could be demoted if you don't have that with you at all times."

"Don't you think I know that? Unfortunately, they don't seem to be waterproof. So I had to spend the last few days hiking through that miserable forest!"

Blake started to respond, but the lights suddenly dimmed, and the screen flickered to life.

"Good evening Boss." Blake said politely as he turned to the television. The man was shrouded in shadows, but appeared to be wearing a white suit.

"Blake, Lorvina, Ray, Samuel," the man replied.

"Great, da Boss is here. Now would ya tell us why we're 'ere?" The muscular man, asked.

"Patients Ray," the Boss replied. "First of all, I would like to congratulate Blake in his recent mission."

"Thank you sir," Blake replied, smirking.

"However, the report of those kids is… interesting. It seems that they have interfered with our plans twice now, isn't that right Lorvina?"

"They're annoying pests." Lorvina replied. "I wouldn't call them threats, just annoying little brats."

"Not a threat? So what does that tell me about your ability as an Admin if you've already lost to them twice Lorvina?" The Boss asked.

Lorvina scowled as Blake chuckled slightly.

"And I wouldn't be laughing if I were you Blake. Don't forget that you didn't beat them either. In fact, your Golbat was almost knocked out."

Blake's smirk instantly vanished, replaced by a scowl. Lorvina laughed.

"So it looks like even the mighty Blake couldn't handle those kids either."

"Unfortunately, I made a miscalculation in their strength." Blake grumbled. "That will not happen again."

The man nodded.

"The next time you see them, do not hold back."

"Yes sir," Blake grumbled.

"Now then, what is the status of your mission Ray?"

"The target 'as been 'erminated," Ray grumbled.

"Very good. You shall remain at the base until further notice."

Ray looked like he wanted to object, but quickly thought better of it and remained silent.

"Now Professor," the man said as he turned his attention to the man in the lab coat. "How is the experiment coming?"

"N-not good sir. Our pr-prototype failed, and we had to start over again."

The Boss growled, clearly not pleased with the report.

"Need I remind you are already under pressure Samuel? If you do not have a successful prototype within a month, I will unfortunately be forced to exterminate you."

Samuel seemed to shrink in his seat as Ray cracked his knuckles.

"I-I will have one for you by then sir!" Samuel stuttered.

"For your sake, I hope you do Samuel. Now then, is there anything else that needs to be brought to the attention of the group?"

"Yes sir," Blake said. "You still have not given me or Lorvina an assignment."

"Ah, yes. You two are also to remain at the base until further notice."

Both Blake and Lorvina looked unhappy at this order, but accepted it nonetheless.

"If that is all, then this meeting is over."

The screen suddenly went blank, and the lights came back on. The four Team Rocket Admins remained for a few moments before one by one, they left.

* * *

**I'm finally done! Wow, that took a lot longer than I thought it would. Anyway, I really don't have a good explanation for my absence. Between schoolwork, extracurriculars, and writing not only this but my other story takes up all my time. I am really sorry for making everyone wait so long.**

**Anyway, this chapter is a lot longer than I thought it would be. I originally thought it would be only nine pages long if I was lucky. I never expected it to be sixteen pages long!**

**So two more Rocket Admins make an appearance. Quite a unique group if I do say so myself. We have the arrogant and angry Lorvina, the calm and cool strategist that doesn't take any chances with Blake, a muscular man and apparent assassin Ray, and the not very physical scientist Samuel.**

**Plus, Derek and Sara had a rematch! Even though Derek was beaten pretty badly. At least Cyndaquil learned Flame Wheel.**

**It looks like Derek and Sara are going to spend some time training at the Day-Care. That should help them out for their next Gym Battles.**

**I would like to thank my reviewers again all the reviews I've gotten. When I started this out, I never imagined that I'd get over 150 reviews, so thank you guys so much.**

**But then again, I also didn't expect that it will be as long as it will be. I've already got a rough draft of what the next twenty-seven or so chapters are going to be like, and I've only made it to the fifth Gym.**

**The poll of who the favorite character in the story is now closed. And the winner is… Blayze with three votes! Ironically, Derek and Lilly didn't receive any votes.**

**Next chapter will be in Goldenrod City, and will not only have one, but two new OCs!!! Plus, some more people are going to appear, although they've already appeared in this story at least once.**

**And finally, don't forget to review!!!!! Please!!!!**


	24. Rotom Ruckus Part 1

**Hey everybody! Okay, I'd like to thank HeroGuardian, Southern Jaguar94, Blaze-Lover, yomaster, Tayyaba, and Zerez for their reviews of chapter 23. I'd also like to thank ShadowDragoon32 for her twenty reviews, and Dobby tha Radio 'Ed for his three reviews, all of which were for previous chapters.**

**I'm really, really sorry for not updating for months on end. Between school, holidays, and working on **_**The Flaming Prodigy**_**, I didn't really spend a lot of time working on Johto Journey. Anyway, onto the chapter…**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!!!!!!**

"So you're going to be heading out then?" The Day-Care Man asked as Sara and Derek packed their bags.

"Yeah, we've got to get to Goldenrod City," Sara said.

The Day-Care Man nodded.

"Well, thank you for spending the last few days here helping us."

"It was our pleasure," Sara replied. "After all, it was good training for us too."

"Yeah, I think we're both ready for our next Gym Battles." Derek added.

"Well, I'm glad that you were able to get something out of staying here," The Day-Care man replied.

"Well, I guess we better get going," Sara said as she shouldered her backpack.

"Right," Derek agreed as he also shouldered his backpack. He then leaned down, allowong Cyndaquil to jump onto his shoulder. He and Sara then turned, and started to walk away from the ranch.

"Goodbye!" the Day-Care Lady called as she waved them off. The Day-Care Man smiled as he watched them leave.

"Well, we might as well get back to work," he said.

* * *

"Wow!" Derek exclaimed as he gazed upon Goldenrod City. He had never seen anything like it. Violet City had been a mixture of older buildings combined with hardly any new, technological ones, while Azalea Town had been relatively small, even before it was almost destroyed by Team Rocket. Goldenrod City, however, was a large city, about five times larger than Violet City was, and was filled with giant skyscrapers and shops. Signs advertising different products were everywhere, and so were the people. The streets were filled with them, and some were even overflowing into the road!

"So this is Goldenrod City, huh?" Sara muttered as she looked around. "It's pretty…big."

"You can say that again," Derek mumbled in agreement.

"Well, what are we just standing around here staring for? Let's go!"

In the city, the crowds were even worse. You could barely stop to look at something in a store window before you were pushed or shoved by someone in the crowd.

"Why are there so many people here?" Derek asked as he was shoved again, this time into the wall of a nearby building.

"Well, it is a city…" Sara mumbled as some guy stomped on her foot. She winced in pain, before she grabbed Derek's arm and started to lead them out of the crowded streets, doing her best to push through the giant mob of people.

"Where are we going?" Derek asked as he tried to keep up with her.

"Hopefully, somewhere that's a little less crowded," Sara replied.

After about a half hour of searching, Derek and Sara finally came across a small park. It was still fairly crowded, but compared to the streets in the city, it might as well have been empty.

"Now, don't you think that this is better?" Sara asked as she stretched, tired of being pushed around by the crowds.

"Definitely," Derek replied, as he noticed a large group of people had gathered a little ways away. "Hey, what do you think is going on over there?"

"No idea," Sara replied. "Come on; let's go see what's happening."

As the two trainers made their way through the crowd, they were able to see what all the commotion was about. Two boys were having a Pokemon Battle. The younger of the two boys had short black hair and green eyes. He was wearing an open black and gold jacket with a gray shirt underneath, and a pair of black jeans. His Pokemon was a tiny red crab, who had tiny bubbles coming out of his mouth.

The other boy also had black hair and green eyes, but he appeared a few years older than the younger boy. He was wearing a black hoodie with a red t-shirt underneath, a pair of black jeans, and white tennis shoes. He also had a pair of sunglasses, which were resting on his forehead. He was using a big, blue duck-like Pokemon, who seemed slightly tired.

"What kind of Pokemon are those?" Derek asked as he took out his Pokedex.

"Krabby, the River Crab Pokemon. It lives in burrows dug on sandy beaches. Its pincers fully grow back if they are broken in battle."

"Golduck, the Duck Pokemon. A Pokemon that lives in lakes. It swims faster than any human swimming champion."

"A battle between two Water types…" Sara mumbled.

"Alright Krabby, let's try a Mud Shot attack!" the younger boy shouted.

"Stop it with Confusion Golduck!" the older boy commanded.

Krabby opened his right red claw, which happened to be the larger of the two, and unleashed a barrage of brown balls of mud. The attack flew through the air at Golduck, who grunted, before focusing his psychic energy at the attack. The mud balls were surrounded by a blue outline, before they suddenly stopped, and hovered motionless in the air.

"Now return to sender!"

Golduck grunted, before pushing the air in front of him with both hands. The Mud Shot attack suddenly shot in the opposite direction, heading straight towards Krabby.

"Block it with Bubblebeam!"

Krabby clicked his pincers, before opening the larger one again, only this time unleashing a stream of blue bubbles. The two attacks collided, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Now time to get in close Golduck! Use Aqua Jet!"

Golduck surrounded himself with water, before launching himself forward, a stream of water trailing behind him.

"Block it with Metal Claw!"

Both of Krabby's claws started to glow a steely white color, before he crossed his arms in front of himself. Golduck continued going and slammed into the Metal Claw. Krabby was pushed back a few feet before Golduck finally jumped back, holding his head in pain. In fact, it looked as if the attack had caused more damage to himself then it did to the small crab.

"Now use Vicegrip!"

Krabby leapt forward, his larger claw in front of him. He quickly clamped it down on Golduck's shoulder, bringing a squawk of discomfort from the Duck Pokemon.

"Get that crab off of you with Scratch!"

"Let go of Golduck and use Harden!"

Krabby quickly let go of Golduck and crossed his once again arms. He tensed his mussels and glowed for a few seconds as Golduck brought his arm back, ready to strike. Golduck then brought his sharp claws across Krabby's body, doing a little bit of damage.

"Now clamp onto his hand with a Vicegrip Krabby!"

Krabby quickly lashed out and clamped his claw down on Golduck's hand, bringing a squawk of surprise from the Water Pokemon.

"Now fire Mud Shot!"

Using his other claw, Krabby quickly opened it and unleashed a barrage of mud balls at close range, which slammed into Golduck's face. Golduck groaned in pain, before collapsing to the ground.

"Looks like we're tied at one apiece," the younger boy said, smiling.

"Amazing job Golduck, return," the older boy said as he recalled his fallen Pokemon. "You're Krabby is pretty tough Hunter, but can it handle my next Pokemon?"

"Bring it on Tyler!" Hunter said as Krabby clicked his claws in agreement.

"Very well, Rotom, time to fight!" Tyler cried as he threw a red and white sphere. It opened, and a red, lighting rod shaped Pokemon with a blue aura of electricity around it appeared. He smiled evilly at his opponent, showing off his teeth. A quiet murmur went through the crowd as people saw the Pokemon Tyler had just sent out.

"What is that thing?" Derek asked as he took his Pokedex out again.

"No information available," the Pokedex responded after a few seconds of silence, its screen that usually shows the Pokemon that it scanned blank.

"What do you mean 'no information available'?" Derek asked as he stared at his Pokedex in confusion.

"It means that Rotom isn't a Pokemon native to Johto, so your Pokedex doesn't have any information on it." Sara muttered as she brought out her Styler. "Maybe my Styler can tell us a little bit about this Rotom."

After looking though her Browser for a few seconds, Sara gave a little cheer of joy as she found information on the Pokemon she was looking for.

"Here it is! 'Rotom, the Plasma Pokemon. Its body is composed of plasma. It is known to infiltrate electronic devices and wreak havoc.'" Sara read aloud.

"Sounds like an interesting Pokemon," Derek mumbled as he turned his attention back to the battle.

"What the heck _is_ that thing?" Hunter asked as he started at the Rotom. Krabby looked confused as well, and clicked his claws.

"This is my Rotom," Tyler replied. "I actually got him a few days ago, and I've been wanting to see what he can do."

"Okay…How about we start off with a Mud Shot Krabby!"

Krabby opened his larger claw, and shot a barrage of mud balls straight at Rotom, who grinned when he saw the attack.

"How about we dodge with a Double Team?" Tyler suggested.

Rotom ignored him, and instead lazily floated up into the air, dodging the Mud Shot attack.

"A Levitate ability…" Sara muttered.

"What?" Derek asked, looking at Sara like she was insane.

"Levitate. It's an ability that makes Ground type moves ineffective."

Rotom then smirked, and unleashed a blast of blue electricity at Krabby.

"Block it with a Metal Claw Krabby!" Hunter shouted.

Krabby's claws shimmered with a silvery light as he crossed them in front of himself in an attempt to block the attack. The electricity kept coming in and hit Krabby's claws before coursing through the rest of his body. Krabby gave a gurgled moan, before he collapsed to the ground in pain.

"No! Krabby…" Hunter cried as he ran to his fallen Pokemon. Rotom crackled with happiness, before unleashing another blast of electricity, this time at Hunter. Hunter cried out in shock as he was hit by the attack, which sent him to the ground.

"Hey! Why did you do that Rotom?" Tyler shouted at his Pokemon. Rotom just laughed, and blasted him with electricity. Tyler moaned in pain as the electricity passed through his body, but he managed to stay upright and take out a Pokeball.

"That's it, no more playing around Rotom. Return," Tyler grumbled. A red light shot out of his Pokeball at Rotom, but Rotom quickly floated to the right, dodging the beam of light. Rotom cackled again, before shooting into a nearby street light. The light started to crackle uncontrollably with electricity, before the light bulb exploded, showering the people below with glass.

"What the heck is up with that Rotom?" Derek asked as Rotom jumped out of the lamp and into a water fountain, which started crackling with electricity before spaying water everywhere.

"Rotom are tricky Pokemon. They like to play jokes on people, which usually involves them wreaking havoc in electronic devices. They can be especially devastating in large cities such as the one we're in right now."

"Hey, are you okay?" Tyler asked Hunter as he helped him to his feet.

"Yeah, I guess so," Hunter replied, recalling his fainted Krabby.

"Sorry about the Rotom thing. I should have known better than to use an untrained Pokemon in our battle."

Hunter laughed. "Nah, it was the perfect time to try out an untrained Pokemon. But now, we need to get your Rotom back under control."

Tyler nodded. "Right."

Both trainers tossed a Pokeball, releasing two different Pokemon.

Hunter released a brown furry Pokemon that looked like a cross between a fur ball, a monkey, and a pig. His nostrils flared as he glared at the people in the park.

Tyler released a weasel-like Pokemon. His long, skinny body was blue on top, and a cream color on the bottom. He had two yellow spots on the back of his neck, and two more near the end of his body. He yawned, before the dots released a blast of fire.

"Mankey, use Karate Chop!" Hunter shouted.

"Quilava, Flame Wheel!" Tyler commanded.

The two Pokemon charged at the water fountain, Mankey's hands glowing white while Quilava curled into a ball and covered himself in flames. The two Pokemon hit the fountain at the same time, knocking Rotom out of the machine but destroying it in the process. Rotom quickly got up however, and blasted both Mankey and Quilava with a Thundershock, pushing them back.

"Mankey, you've got to fight back! Use another Karate Chop!" Hunter yelled.

"No, cancel your attack!" Tyler shouted, a hint of worry in his voice.

Mankey charged forward with his hands glowing again. He then quickly jumped into the air, and brought them both down on Rotom's head…Only for his hands to go through Rotom's body, doing no damage at all.

Rotom smirked, and blew a blast of purplish wind at Mankey, sending him flying back into Quilava.

"Rotom is an Electric and Ghost type, so Fighting and Normal type attacks won't affect him," Tyler explained.

"Great, how are we supposed to hit it then? Mankey is my only Pokemon that is still fit for battle."

"Pidgey, use Gust!" a voice shouted.

"Butterfree, use Confusion!" a second voice called.

Rotom was suddenly blasted by a gust of wind, before he was surrounded by a purple outline and slammed into the ground. Derek, Sara, Pidgey, and Butterfree then stepped in front of Tyler and Hunter, ready to battle.

"Butterfree, go in for a Bug Bite!" Sara shouted.

Butterfree quickly swooped down at Rotom, his fangs glowing a light green color. He then bit down on Rotom's head, bringing a moan of pain from the Plasma Pokemon. Rotom then released a blast of electricity in retaliation, shocking Butterfree. He groaned, and released his grip on Rotom, who quickly shot to the left, disappearing into some bushes.

"He got away," Sara mumbled.

"Rotom, come back!" Tyler shouted in a futile attempt to lure his Pokemon back.

"Sorry, we couldn't stop him," Derek said as Pidgey landed on his shoulder.

Tyler sighed.

"Thanks for your help anyway. My name is Tyler, Tyler Reed," he said, holding out his hand.

"Derek Aareno," Derek said as he shook Tyler's hand. "And this is my friend Sara."

"Hey," Sara said as she called Butterfree back over to her.

"Nice to meet you both, I'm Hunter," the younger boy said as he helped his Mankey back to his feet.

"What's that…?" Derek mumbled as he took out his Pokedex.

"Mankey, the Pig Monkey Pokemon. It lives in treetop colonies. If one becomes enraged, the whole colony rampages for no reason," the Pokedex said. Derek then turned his attention to the weasel-like Pokemon, who was shaking himself off.

"Quilava, the Volcano Pokemon. It intimidates foes with the heat of its flames. The fire burns more strongly when it readies to fight," the Pokedex said.

"Interesting," Derek mumbled as he returned his Pokedex to his pocket.

"Anyway, if you want, we could help get your Rotom back," Sara offered.

"Yeah, I'll help too!" Hunter said happily.

"Thank you guys so much. Now then, I guess we better start our search," Tyler said.

* * *

The streets of Goldenrod were as crowded as ever. People swarmed in all directions, moving from building to building, road to road, or just going along to some destination. Cars were stopped in the middle of the road, some of them honking their horns in an attempt to try to get the traffic moving again, even though the car or cars in front of them were blocked by the endless stream of people who were constantly crossing the street.

However, once the light bulbs in the street lamps above started to explode suddenly, people started to scream and panic, as you can imagine. They turned and scrambled wildly, which only made the giant throng of people clump together even more then they had before, making it almost impossible to move in the large crowd of bodies.

One of the giant screens hanging on one of the nearby skyscrapers suddenly flickered and died, before a picture of a laughing Rotom suddenly appeared on it. The hundreds of people on the ground looked up at the sign in confusion, their previous panic temporarily forgotten.

The giant Rotom on the screen seemed to look down at the people on the streets below, before he suddenly smirked. There was a loud cracking sound, as the television flickered and went black, before it started to tilt forward. The panic suddenly returned to the people as they tried frantically to get away. It was no use though, as the large crowd of people were barely able to move, let alone run, as the giant screen started to fall freely through the air.

"Butterfree, Confusion, Eevee, Helping Hand, Mareep, Thundershock!"

"Pidgey, Gust, Cyndaquil, Tackle, Sentret, Scratch!"

"Mankey, Karate Chop!"

The giant screen was suddenly encased in a blue outline as Butterfree struggled to slow it down with his Confusion attack. However, even with the extra power from Eevee's Helping Hand attack, he could barely slow it down, let alone stop its fall.

Enter Pidgey and Mareep, who launch a stream of wind and a blast of electricity at the screen, slowing it down even more. Mankey, Cyndaquil, and Sentret also tried to slow it down by jumping high into the air and unleashing a series of attacks, only for each one to bounce off of it, their attacks doing nothing at all.

"It's no use, we can't stop it!" Hunter shouted.

"I know!" Tyler exclaimed as he pulled out a Pokeball of his own. He quickly threw it into the air, releasing a bluish-silver, disk like Pokemon who had two large, clawed arms. He quickly floated into the air, his attention focused on the falling television.

"Metang, stop it with Confusion!" Tyler shouted.

"Meta," Metang replied as he lifted his arms, encasing himself in a blue outline. The blue outline around the screen seemed to strengthen, and the combined power of the two Confusion attacks, the Gust, and the Thundershock managed to stop the screen in mid air, hovering a few inches over the heads of the crowd.

With a grunt, Metang and Butterfree set the screen down in a nearby alleyway, leaning it against one of the buildings.

"That was close…" Derek said with a sigh of relief. He then took out his Pokedex, and pointed it at Metang.

"No information available," the Pokedex responded.

"Allow me," Sara said, taking out her Styler. She flipped through her Browser a bit before she finally found what she was looking for.

"Here it is. 'Metang, the Iron Claw Pokemon. It is formed by two Beldum joining together. Its steel body won't be scratched if it collides with a jet.'" Sara read out loud.

"Wow, sounds tough," Derek remarked as he started at the hovering Metang.

"Metang was my first ever Pokemon, and has been with me since the beginning of my journey," Tyler told them, patting Metang on his head.

"Hey, wait a second guys," Hunter said as he suddenly started to look around frantically. "Where did Rotom go?!"

Derek, Sara, and Tyler all looked started to look around as well, but it was a futile attempt as there was no sign of Rotom anywhere. The Plasma Pokemon had somehow gotten away again once again…

* * *

Rotom snickered as he traveled along the power lines of Goldenrod City. He had managed to sneak away before the last wire connecting the giant flat screen television had snapped, and was now happily searching for the next place to cause mischief.

Infiltrating a nearby security camera on the street, Rotom was able to scan the city for possible places to have more fun.

"_Ooh, looky at what I founded!"_ Rotom said, smirking. He was gazing at a large, multistory store, which had to be one of the largest stores, if not the largest, in the entire city.

Chuckling quietly to himself, Rotom made his way over the Goldenrod Department Store.

* * *

Lily quietly hummed to herself as she walked through the Dept. Store. Her arms were filled with shopping bags, which contained various things for Contests, clothes, Pokemon food, and the occasional odd item. The best thing of all though, was that everything was on sale it seemed. There were giant signs everywhere advertising all the different sales going on in the store, and there didn't seem to be any more space on any wall throughout the store to put any more signs.

Her Pichu was perched on her left shoulder, happily playing with a strand of her hair. Chikorita was walking along beside her, a yellow ribbon tied to her leaf.

"Well, what do you guys think?" Lily asked her Pokemon. "Should we call it a day?"

Both of her Pokemon shook their heads. They were clearly enjoying their time off from training for the upcoming Goldenrod City Pokemon Contest, and wanted to enjoy their relaxation while it lasted.

"Okay, then why don't we see what they're selling over there?" Lily suggested, motioning to a nearby stall. They seemed to be selling some sort of electronic item, which resembled a watch. Both of her Pokemon nodded, and they made their way over to the stall.

"Hello little lady, can I interest you in selling the lasted version of Pokegear?" One of the men behind the stall asked.

"Pokegear?" Sara asked as she started at the strange device.

"Yes, Pokegear. This handy little machine functions not only as a clock, but it also serves as a phone, a radio, and holds a map of Johto."

"Can I see it please?" Lily asked, holding out her hand. The man smiled, and handed her the Pokegear. As soon at Lily touched the device, it started to spark, and release a black stream of smoke.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!" Lily said as she instantly dropped the Pokegear as it shocked her. The Pokegear hit the floor, and instantly shattered into multiple pieces.

"Hey, you have to pay for that!" the man shouted. Suddenly, all of the Pokegears in the stall also began to spark, each of them unleashing black plumes of smoke into the air just like the first one.

"H-hey! What's going on?!" The man asked. Suddenly, a small, red Pokemon shot out of one of the Pokegears, and smacked right into Lily's Pichu. Pichu cried out in shock, not expecting to be hit by something, and fell off of Lily's shoulder. She hit the ground, and immediately released a blast of electricity, frying various things around her. A few shoppers cried out in surprise, and they quickly ducked and moved out of the way of the blasts.

"What the heck was that?" Lily asked as her Pichu finally stopped her attack.

"I have no idea," the man replied. Suddenly, the light bulbs above them suddenly exploded, sending a shower of glass, plastic, and metal down on the shoppers below. There was a sudden scream, as a nearby stove that was part of a poffin display suddenly turned on by itself, burning someone's hand.

As more light bulbs exploded and random electronic appliances turned on and off, the shoppers quickly began to panic. Pushing and shoving, the startled mob all ran towards the staircase at once, only to be blocked by an air conditioner unit that was flung from the wall to block the doorway, along with a bunch of metal items that seemed to be strangely magnetized to it.

Their exit blocked, the mob desperately tried to remove the wreckage, but to no avail. Meanwhile, more light bulbs exploded overhead, and various other electronics turned on and off, or moved about the room, freaking people out.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and two more Pokemon appeared. One was small and yellow with black markings on his body, and what appeared to be the end of an electrical cord on his head.

The second was a blue, serpentine Pokemon with a big white area on his face where his mouth should be.

"Elekid, start to charge electricity to attract that thing out into the open," a man commanded.

The man was tall and skinny, and was slightly muscular with tanned skin. He had long, dark hair with lime green highlights, and cerulean blue eyes. He was wearing a white t-shirt under a black vest, black pants, and black converse.

As the people started at the man, the yellow Pokemon began to quickly spin his arms around in a windmill fashion. It started to generate large amounts of electricity, releasing sparks from his body. A small, orange Pokemon suddenly emerged from one of the nearby television sets, staring at the Elekid. The crowd started to murmur, none of them ever remember seeing a Pokemon like that. The man smiled.

"Now Dratini, use Dragon Rage!"

The blue serpentine Pokenon immediately launched a beam of red, blue, and orange energy at the orange Pokemon. The Dragon Rage hit, sending the Pokemon to the ground. It quickly got back up, and glared at the man and his Pokemon angrily.

"This might be a problem…" the man mumbled as the orange creature sent a blast of purple wind and electricity straight at him and his Pokemon.

* * *

"So, where now?" Hunter asked as he and the others looked around for any signs of Rotom.

"We find a place that an Electric Pokemon could go and cause a lot of havoc," Tyler replied, trying to keep the group's spirit up.

"Great, that narrows our search down to almost every single large building in the city," Derek grumbled.

"Actually, I think I may know where Rotom is," Sara said, pointing at one of the giant television screens on a skyscraper.

"Breaking news," a woman who seemed to be in her thirties said as she was handed a piece of paper. "It seems that there is a disturbance at the Department Store in Goldenrod City. We now bring you live to the scene.

The woman then disappeared, and was replaced with a younger man, who was standing in front of a colorful skyscraper.

"Thank you Sheena. Multiple people are trapped in the Department Store as some unknown Pokemon has infiltrated the electrical system, and blocked the exit for anyone above the fourth floor. Eyewitnesses who have called in the attack describe the Pokemon as small and orange, with a strange aura about it. It seems to be able to infiltrate and control electrical devices, and from what we can gather, seems to be almost enjoying itself at the mayhem it is causing."

"Yep, that is definitely Rotom," Tyler mumbled.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get over to that Department Store now!" Sara exclaimed.

* * *

"Chikorita, use Razor Leaf, Pichu, use Thundershock!"

A flurry of leaves and a blast of electricity met the Rotom's attack head on, stopping it in its tracks. The two attacks continued to fight for the upper hand, each one pushing the other back and forth, until they finally exploded, releasing a small cloud of smoke.

"Thanks for that," the man grunted, and Lily smiled at him.

"No problem. My name's Lily."

"Brayden," the man replied, before turning his attention back to the battle. Rotom was laughing slightly as he sent another blast of electricity at the lights, causing half of the remaining light bulbs to explode.

"What is that thing?" Lily asked.

"No idea," Brayden replied. "All I know is that we have to stop it before it makes the whole building collapse.

Lily nodded.

"Right, so how about we take it out together?"

Brayden smiled slightly.

"Sure, why not? Elekid, Thundershock, Dratini, Dragon Rage!"

"Use Charm Pichu, and you use Magical Leaf Chikorita!"

* * *

"Wow…" Derek said as he stared wide-eyed at the giant Dept. Building. Plumes of smoke were coming out of one of the middle-level floors, and random rubble occasionally fell from the slightly crumbling building. A large crowd of people had gathered around the building, including multiple reporters and camera men.

"So, how do we get inside?" Hunter asked.

"That's going to be the hard part," Sara said. "I doubt they're letting anyone inside that building considering what's going on inside."

"Then what do we do?" Derek asked.

"Simple, we lure Rotom out," Tyler said.

Three pairs of eyes started at Tyler in confusion, waiting for him to continue.

"Here's what we need to do. Two of us need to sneak into the Dept. Store, and attack Rotom. Their goal will be to drive Rotom out of the store, where the other two will corner him. Simple, eh?"

"Great, just one problem, we still need to find a way to get the two people inside," Sara said, rolling her eyes.

"Leave that to me," Tyler said, smirking. "Getting two people inside won't be a problem for my Metang. Although, I should probably stay outside so I can recall Rotom back to his Pokeball when he's chased out of the store."

"Good idea," Sara said. "My Pokemon can offer you back-up outside if you need it."

"So it looks like you and I will be going inside, eh Derek?" Hunter said, patting Derek on the shoulder.

Derek nodded. "I guess so."

* * *

"He's fast," Lily grunted as she, Brayden, and their Pokemon looked around wildly for Rotom.

"There!" Brayden said suddenly as Rotom peeked out from behind a pile of broken machinery. "Elekid, Thundershock, Dratini, Dragon Rage!"

Elekid blasted another bolt of electricity while Dratini once again shot a beam of red, blue, and orange flames at the Rotom, who quickly hid behind the rubble, which blocked both attacks for him.

"He's fast," Brayden grumbled.

"Here, let me try," Lily said, turning to her Pokemon.

"Pichu, lure Rotom out with Charm!"

Pichu nodded, and walked out into the open area between the trainers and the Rotom. Standing in the middle of the room, Pichu waited as Rotom slowly poked his head out from behind the pile of rubble again, watching her. Seeing her opponent, Pichu winked at him, sending three hearts floating through the air and at the Plasma Pokemon.

Rotom was struck by the Charm attack, making him slightly uncomfortable.

"Now Sweet Kiss!"

Pichu winked again, only this time she blew a kiss at her opponent, which turned into a flurry of more hearts. Once again, Rotom did nothing to dodge, and was struck by the attack. His eyes quickly began to cloud over as he stared at Pichu, a look of confusion plastered on his face.

"Now keep on using Charm Pichu! Chikorita, while Pichu is distracting Rotom, sneak up behind him and get ready to use a Magical Razor Leaf combo!"

The two Pokemon nodded, and quickly set off to complete their orders. Pichu continued to wink and send more hearts at Rotom, distracting him, while Chikorita ran around the edge of the room, until Rotom's back was to her. Taking a deep breath, she pulled back the leaf on her head…

…Only for one of the windows to explode inward, showering trainers and Pokemon alike with glass, powder, and dust.

"What the heck?!" Lily shouted as she started to cough.

"I think we have visitors…" Brayden mumbled as he peered through the smoke and dust at three new figures that had come through the window. One was floating in the air, while the other two were on the floor, coughing.

"Okay, who's bright idea was it to have Metang blast us through the window?!" one of the figures on the floor asked.

"Who's idea was it to let Metang even take us up here with Confusion in the first place?" the second figure on the floor fired back.

"Derek?!" Lily asked, recognizing the second voice.

"Lily? What are you doing here?" Derek asked as the smoke started to clear from the room.

"You two know each other?" Brayden asked, looking between the two kids.

"Yeah, we've ran into each other a few times." Lily replied. "But what happened to that obnoxious, Contest-hating girl that you were traveling with before? And who's the guy with you?"

"Sara? She's waiting outside the building. And this is Hunter. We're here to stop the Rotom."

"Speaking of Rotom," Hunter said, looking around. "Where did he go? I thought you guys were trapped in here by him."

"He's right over there…" Lily said, pointing over to the area where Rotom was before Hunter and Derek had found their way inside. The one thing that had changed, however, was that Rotom was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

"How do you think they're doing up there?" Sara asked, looking up at where Metang, Derek, and Hunter had blasted their way into the Dept. Store.

"It's hard to tell," Tyler replied. "Although, there is less smoke coming from the building, and there's no more explosions or flashes of light, so it's pretty safe to assume that the battle is over. What we don't know is whether or not Derek and Hunter managed to knock Rotom out, or if he somehow managed to escape."

"Well, I think that I might have just found the answer to your question," Sara said, pointing to a black power line. Sparks of electricity were being emitted from it, and they seemed to be moving away from the Dept. Store.

"That's Rotom alright. Those sparks are too uniform to be of natural causes. Come on, we've got to follow him."

With that said, Tyler began to give chase to the sparks, which were quickly moving away from him.

"What about your Metang?" Sara asked, running after Tyler.

"He'll know how to find me. Right now, we've got to catch that Rotom!"

* * *

"Well, it's official: Rotom has left the building," Hunter said as he sat on one of the boxes left in the destroyed room.

"I don't get it. How could Rotom get away from us so easily?" Derek asked, still searching for the elusive Plasma Pokemon.

"Hmm… I don't know. Maybe through that giant hole in the wall when all that dust was kicked up?" Lily said sarcastically, glaring at Derek and Hunter slightly.

"Now, now, let's not go around blaming people," Brayden said, moving in between Lily and the two other boys.

"He's right. We need to find out where Rotom ran off to," Hunter said, standing back up.

"That shouldn't be too hard," Derek said. "After all, all we need to do is look for a building or some other electronic thing to start going haywire."

"Derek, this is _Goldenrod, _one of the biggest cities in Johto. Even though you know what you're looking for, it's going to take you forever to find it," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"She's right, which is why we should all go out looking for it," Brayden said, eyeing Lily.

"And exactly why should I have to go trekking through the city to find someone else's Pokemon?" Lily asked. "I only helped here because it attacked me and my Pokemon."

"And if you don't help us, that means that Rotom will end up attacking other people, possibly someone who doesn't have Pokemon to defend themselves with."

"That's their problem if they choose to go out without a Pokemon in this town."

Brayden appeared to think for a second, before he suddenly smiled. "You're a Coordinator right? What if I showed you a new combination you can use with your Pokemon in your next Contest?"

"How do you know that I'm a Coordinatior?" Lily asked, slightly suspicious.

"Well, it's kind of obvious by the way you battle. You chose to focus more on strategy and flashy attacks then brute force, and most of your attacks seem too polished to be taught by a normal trainer."

"Alright…But what could you possibly have to show me?"

Brayden smiled, and reaching into his back pocket, he brought out a slightly battered bright orange ribbon case. He then flipped the cover off, revealing five exotic looking ribbons, making Lily's eyes grow wide.

"I guess you'll just have to help us if you want to find out," Bryaden said, closing his case and putting it back into his pocket.

Lily appeared to think about it for a moment before sighing. "Fine, I'll help you track down your stupid little Rototm. But you better have something good to show me after that."

* * *

"Where did he go?" Sara asked, looking around wildly for any electronic devices giving off sparks.

"I think we lost him…" Tyler mumbled, also looking around.

"Well that's just great. How are we…" Sara started to say before she was suddenly cut off by a loud shriek.

"I think I might have found him again," Tyler mumbled as he quickly took off in the direction the scream came from with Sara close behind him. After pushing their way through the giant crowd of people, they suddenly found themselves in front of a large glass skyscraper. The front revolving door was spinning around wildly, emitting tons of sparks. The crowds of people were quickly running away from the building, probably trying to get away from the out of control revolving door.

"Yep, that's definitely Rotom," Sara said. "Now what do we do?"

Tyler thought for a second, before turning around and looking at Sara. "You have an Electric Pokemon, right?"

"Uh, yeah," Sara said, taking out a Pokeball. "Mareep, come on out."

Mareep appeared in a flash of white light, blinking sleepily. She then shook herself, before looking at Sara.

"Alright, now what?" Sara asked.

"Tell Mareep to attack the door with an Electric attack. She might be able to overload the electrical wiring in the door and force Rotom out."

"Okay, Mareep, Thundershock on the door!" Sara shouted, pointing at the out of control rotating door. Mareep spent a few seconds charging up energy, before unleashing a blast of yellow electricity at the door. There was a tiny explosion, and a plume of smoke was released from the door before it finally started to slow down. After a few more seconds, it finally came to a stop, still releasing smoke into the air.

"Did it work?" Sara asked, looking around for Rotom.

"I think so," Tyler replied. "I mean, if it has no power running through it, Rotom can't control it."

"Well, where is he then?"

Tyler shrugged. "My guess is that he ran away into the building instead of coming out here to face us."

"Well, we might as well go after him then." Sara said as she slowly pushed the door to see if it still moved. To her relief, the door easily rotated at her touch, squeaking slightly as it spun.

"After you," Tyler said, nodding at Sara to go inside. She did so, pushing the glass panel of the revolving door in front of her, disappearing into the dark building. Tyler quickly followed her lead, he too entering the darkened building where Rotom was certainly hiding.

* * *

**Well, I finally decided to break this chapter into two parts since I still have quite a bit more to do before I'm done with this arc. That means that the third Gym Battle won't be next chapter, but the chapter after that.**

**Again, I am extremely sorry for not updating sooner. It is unacceptable for not updating sooner, but like I said before, I've been extremely busy with stuff going on in my life. I promise it will not take me that long to update again.**

**Hunter Garcia belongs to Southern Jaguar94.**

**Tyler Reed belongs to eli W.**

**Brayden Nedyarb belongs to writer's block 2000.**

**So, three new OCs have been introduced, one that has a very mischievous Rotom, and another that seems to be an experienced Coordinator. Yes, I know that I said that I would only introduce two new OCs, but I decided I might as well go ahead and do all three while I had the chance.**

**Anyway, if you haven't already, go check out my second story, **_**The Flaming Prodigy.**_** I've already posted the prolouge and the first chapter, and I think it's going to be even better then Johto Journey.**

**Ironically, the last two chapters that I posted, this one and chapter one of TFP, are the two longest chapters I've ever written. This chapter is nineteen pages long with over 7,000 words, and chapter one of TFP was twenty pages long with a little over 8,000 words. This is probably one of the main reasons it took me so long to update.**

**Well, that's about it. And as always, please review.**


	25. Rotom Ruckus Part 2

**Well, let's get this chapter started. As usual, I'd like to thank Blaze-Lover, HeroGuardian, Sin of Dragons, eli W., WildCroconaw, Creation of Pokerus, and Southern Jaguar94 for their reviews. Also, I would like to thank WildCroconaw again for his review of chapter 19. That's about it, so…on with the chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.**

Blayze walked down one of the side streets of Goldenrod City, admiring a pink, diamond shaped badge in his hand. As he walked down the street, people stopped what they were doing and stared at the odd boy, who currently had a Hoothoot on perched on his head, flapping his tiny wings happily.

"Sandshrew and Beedrill did a great job in that Gym Battle, don't you think Hoothoot?" Blayze asked as he slipped his new badge into his pocket. Hoothoot chirped a happy tune, but whether it was in response to Blayze or just a random chirp Blayze didn't know. He really didn't care either.

"I hope you got a good feel from that Gym Battle Hoothoot, since we need to kick up our training so I can use you in my next Gym Battle. Between you, Houndoor, and Beedrill, we shouldn't have too much trouble at the Gym in Ecruteak City."

The only response from Hoothoot was the happy flapping of his tiny wings.

Blayze sighed. "You know, it might be a good idea to pay attention. One day it just might help you out."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Blayze ran into a traffic light pole. Groaning, he stepped back, clutching his face in pain. Hoothoot, oblivious to all this, continued flapping his wings.

"I hope you're happy," Blayze groaned, still clutching his face in pain. Just then, two police motorcycles flew down the road, their sirens wailing, going straight through a red light and turning left at down another side road.

"Wonder what's going on…" Blayze mumbled to himself, looking in the direction the motorcycles had went. Hoothoot's black crest on his head suddenly perked up, and he flew into the air, his eyes shooting a red beam in the direction the police had went. After a few seconds of staring, Hoothoot blinked, the beam winking out, and gave a worried hoot. He quickly set off in pursuit of the police, leaving Blayze behind.

"Hey, Hoothoot! Where are you going?" Blayze shouted as he watched his Pokémon fly away. Grumbling, he readjusted his backpack, and set off after the Owl Pokémon.

* * *

"You guys see anything?" Derek asked, looking up and down another street.

"Nothing on my end," Hunter said, looking in a store window and not seeing anything weird.

"Nothing here," Lilly said, sounding extremely bored.

"I think I might have found something," Brayden shouted, motioning to a nearby electronics store that had multiple televisions showing the same channel in the display window. It appeared to be showing an aerial shot of another office building. From the shot, the group could barely make out various objects being thrown or moved all throughout the building along with a crowd of people quickly running away from the seemingly "haunted" skyscraper.

"Think that's Rotom?" Hunter asked. He almost immediately received a slap to the back of his head from Lilly, smacking his face against the glass of the display window in the process.

"Of course that's Rotom. How many other electronically psycho ghosts do you see wandering this city destroying stuff?"

"I see what you mean," Hunter mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

"Where is that building anyway?" Derek asked, trying to find a clue as to where it could be.

"No idea," Brayden replied. "Guess that means we're back to running up and down the streets looking for a big skyscraper that's destroying itself from the inside out. Shouldn't be too hard, right?"

* * *

Tyler quietly peeked around the corner of the wall, looking down a long, abandoned hallway. Not seeing anything, he stepped out from behind the protection of the wall, barely making a sound on the padded carpet.

"Anything?" Sara whispered, looking around the corner herself.

Tyler shook his head in reply and carefully continued forward, wary for any traps that might be waiting for him. Sara slowly followed after him, a hand resting on the Poké Balls on her belt. Nothing happened however, as the two managed to cross the entire length of the hallway to the stairwell without incident.

"This is so creepy," Sara mumbled. "Where is everyone? Shouldn't there at least be one person in this building?"

"Rotom most likely scared them away," Tyler replied, looking around. "But I wonder what kinds of things they do in this building."

"Probably something electronic related, considering Rotom chose it out of all the other skyscrapers in the city. After all, look at everything he's attacked. The water fountain was the closest electrical device in the park, the giant TV obviously had a lot of power running to it, and the Department Store was practically filled to the roof with electronic gizmos that Rotom could use."

"Well, there's one way to find out," Tyler said, walking over to one of the doorways.

"What are you doing?" Sara asked. Tyler ignored her, and instead kicked the door, the blow making a loud cracking sound. It almost immediately swung open, revealing a fairly spacious room inside.

"I've always wanted to do that," Tyler grinned happily as he stepped into the room, Sara following him while rolling her eyes.

"You know, there's this amazing new invention out there that lets you open a door without practically breaking it. It's called a doorknob. You know, it's that round thing that you twist and the big rectangle in your way magically swings open."

"Yeah, but what's the fun in that?" Tyler asked as he rummaged around in a desk, looking for, well, something Sara didn't want to even guess at what it was he was looking so diligently for.

While she was waiting for Tyler, Sara let her eyes wander the room. It seemed to be filled with various desks, each equipped with a computer. A giant bulletin board dominated a large portion of the far wall, and had various pieces of paper and reminders pinned to it. Next to the board stood a clear water tank with some cups stacked on top of it. However, the thing that captured Sara's attention though was a small, orange orb that seemed to be floating inside the tank.

"Uh, Tyler?" Sara said, taking a step back as the orange ball suddenly moved through the water by itself.

Tyler looked up from the desk, confused. "What is it Sara?"

"I think I just might have found our little friend," Sara replied, her eyes not leaving the tank. Following Sara's gaze, Tyler's eyes lit up as he saw what she had spied.

"There he is alright," Tyler said, nodding.

"What do you think he's doing?"

Tyler raised an eyebrow, a huge grin spreading across his face. "Why, isn't it obvious?" he asked. "That little rascal is getting a drink."

"What?" Sara asked a little too loudly as her focus turned away from Rotom to Tyler.

"Well, it's either that, or he's taking a swim, and I'm not entirely sure if Rotom can swim or not, so…"

"So in other words, you're just blindly guessing." Rolling her eyes, Sara returned her attention back to Rotom, only to find the little orange Pokémon was staring back at the two of them, a smirk plastered on his face.

"Uh oh," Tyler managed to say before the tap below the water barrel exploded, releasing a blast of pressurized water at Sara and Tyler. The torrent slammed into the two of them with a surprising force, knocking them both onto their backs, coughing and sputtering. Inside the rapidly emptying tank, Rotom laughed hysterically, tears practically coming to his eyes.

"Alright, I've had enough of these games," Sara grumbled, grabbing two of her Poké Balls and tossing them at the water machine. Mareep and Eevee both appeared in a flash of light, ready to battle. "Eevee, Helping Hand, Mareep, blast that machine with Thunder Shock."

Jumping straight into action, both Eevee and Mareep bounded forward, preparing their respective attacks. While Mareep gathered electricity from her wool, Eevee's tail had begun to glow with a golden light. With a cry, the energy from her tail shot out into five orbs and zoomed at her teammate, who absorbed the energy from the Helping Hand attack. Smirking, Mareep unleashed a blast of electricity from her wool at the water tank, the blast about twice as large as it usually would be.

Rotom, however, seemed completely undisturbed by the attack. In fact, he looked almost…amused. With a chuckle, the water spout below the tank suddenly exploded again, and the remaining water squirted out of the newly enlarged hole and collided with the Thundershock. Surprisingly, the water actually cut through the electricity with ease and promptly slammed into Mareep, soaking her fur and sending her sliding back behind Sara and Tyler into the wall.

"Mareep!" Sara cried, watching her Pokémon struggle to her feet. Meanwhile, Rotom was laughing hysterically inside the practically empty water tank. With one last grin, he shot down through the tank into the machine below, and promptly disappeared.

"Dang it, he's escaping through the electrical system," Tyler muttered as the water from the tank slowed down to a few drips, leaving a fairly soaked floor, two dripping Trainers, and one very wet Mareep behind. Sara began to run over to her fallen Pokémon, but was stopped when Tyler's arm shot out and grabbed her wrist.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sara asked, trying to pull away from him.

Tyler shook his head. "It's probably not the best idea to go over and try to touch Mareep right now. After all, her fur is the main storage place for her electricity, and now that it's all wet, you can get a pretty large shock if you try to go anywhere near her. In fact, I wouldn't doubt that she's shocking herself right now."

"Well then what am I supposed to do?" Sara grumbled, still trying to break free.

"Just return her to her Poké Ball until we can get to a Pokémon Center and have her all checked out. She should be nice and safe in there, right?"

Sara sighed, but still grabbed Mareep's Poké Ball from her belt with her free hand, aiming the dot in the center directly at the Wool Pokémon. "Take a rest Mareep," she mumbled, a red beam of light shooting out from the ball and engulfing her. Mareep gave one last bleat before she was sucked back inside of the sphere.

Sara returned the Poké Ball to her belt, before turning back to Tyler, who had finally released her from his grasp. "So, what now?"

Tyler grinned, showing a slightly subtle resemblance to his Rotom in the way he did so. "Why, we track him down again of course!"

* * *

Lilly sighed as she sat down on a miraculously free bench along the side of the street. Today was definitely not going how she had planned it. She had expected to do a bit of shopping, followed by relaxing in a park somewhere in the city with her Pokémon so they could be well rested for their Contest training tomorrow. Instead, she had been attacked and almost killed by a little orange thing, bribed into helping to look for it, and then walking pointlessly around the city for miles and not accomplishing anything whatsoever.

"I should have never agreed to this," she grumbled. "That guy better have something good to show me after this, or else he is seriously going to regret getting me caught up in this pointless search."

"Um, escuse me," a quiet, high-pitched voice suddenly said close to Lilly. Jerking her head to the right, Lilly saw a small child, probably only three or four years old, staring at her with wide eyes. He was dressed simply in a light blue shirt and a pair of white shorts, and one of his small hands clutched that of an older woman, most likely the boy's mother. "Who are you talking to lady?"

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Leave me alone kid, it's been a long day."

The little boy continued to stare at Lilly, as if fascinated by her. Taking a cautious step forward, he tentatively raised his tiny arm and poked her leg. Not seeing her react, he poked her leg again, receiving the same reaction. A small smile beginning to form on his face, the boy continued to poke Lilly. Soon, he was giggling uncontrollably, while Lilly was getting more and more annoyed with each successive poke.

Finally, she snapped.

"Cut it out you little brat!" she shouted, glaring at the annoying little pest. The boy was so startled at the sudden outburst that he stumbled backwards, tripping on his own two feet, and landed on the cold, hard concrete of the sidewalk. "Oh crap," she mumbled, seeing the boy's eyes start to water. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. Please don't cry."

Sniffling, the boy looked up at Lilly, and immediately screamed. He quickly scrambled to his feet and began tugging desperately at his mother's arm, trying to run away from a very confused Lilly. Meanwhile, the rest of the people in the crowd all turned to look at what the screaming was about, and after a few seconds most of them were staring in Lilly's direction with various expressions on their faces.

Lilly was about to ask them what in the world they were looking at when a loud, booming "Meta!" sounded directly behind her. Whirling around in surprise, Lilly came face to face with a large, silver UFO with two big red eyes. Unfortunately for her, the spinning around caused her balance to shift, and she began to fall backwards. Unable to straighten herself, she ended up falling down onto the concrete herself, landing awkwardly on her back with her legs still resting on the bench.

"Hey, you alright?" a slightly familiar voice asked. A few seconds later, Derek came into Lilly's line of sight, standing over her fallen form.

Rolling her eyes, Lilly swung her legs off of the bench and quickly stood up. "Give a girl a warning next time you sneak up on her, would ya?" she asked, brushing some of the dirt off of her clothes.

"Yeah… Sorry about that. Tyler's Metang is just a bit eager to get going. And truthfully, I'm surprised he waited long enough to find us so we could go along."

Lilly gave him a blank stare, not really getting what Derek was trying to say. "What in the world are you talking about?"

"Metang picked up on Rotom's electric wave things. I don't really understand what they are, but apparently, Rotom gives off some sort of signal that Metang can pick up on and then follow it. Brayden does a better job of explaining it than I do."

"So wait, you're telling me that you guys found Rotom?" Lilly asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Well, yeah, pretty much. Brayden and Hunter are waiting for us a few blocks away, so we need to get going. Are you ready?"

"I've been ready to find that dang Rotom for hours now. The sooner we get this done, the sooner I can go back to my room and get some rest."

* * *

"Tell me again why we're still in this building," Sara said as both she and Tyler ran up another flight of stairs, both of them taking two at a time. "I thought we needed to find Rotom. Why would he still be in the building if people know he's there?"

"Because I don't think Rotom has messed with the thing he came here to mess with," Tyler replied. "You can find water machines everywhere, so there must be something else in this building that made him want to come here. And whatever that thing is, I doubt he would leave this place without first toying with it."

"Are you sure? I mean, there are plenty of other electric things all over this city. I don't think Rotom would stick around in a place he knows is possibly dangerous to his running around when there are other nice targets probably just down the street. I mean, we haven't even seen anything worth his while here. Who's to say that-"

Sara's speech was abruptly caught off by a loud, ear-splitting scream from above them. Judging by the pitch from the shriek, Sara guessed that it most likely came from a young girl, as it was a fairly high frequency.

Still climbing the stairs, Tyler looked back and grinned at Sara. "What were you saying again?"

Rolling her eyes, Sara said, "Fine, you win. Happy now? Either way, it sounds like Rotom might be terrorizing someone, so we might want to hurry up before Rotom does something that could possibly hurt that poor little girl."

"Already on it," Tyler said, pulling out a Poké Ball from his coat pocket. "Quilava, help us out would ya?" Not breaking stride, Tyler tossed his red and white sphere up through a gap in the middle of the switchback staircase, sending his Poké Ball all the way up to the top floor, where it released its contents in a flash of white light. "Scout that floor out for us and see if you can find Rotom!"

"Quil!" was the response from Tyler's Pokémon up above, followed by the quick pitter-patter sound of his feet as he ran off to go search the upper-most floor.

"So now what? Do we wait for Quilava to find Rotom or do we follow him?" Sara asked, trying to keep up with Tyler's fast pace up the stairwell.

"What? No way! It will be quicker if we search the top floors as well. 'Sides, that scream could have come from either of the upper two floors, and Quilava's only searching the very top one. So we should handle the one directly below it."

"Well then," Sara said, grabbing two Poké Balls from her belt and enlarging them in her hand, "let's make sure we can finish our floor quickly so we can help out Quilava or vice-versa. Eevee, Butterfree, help us search."

With a toss, Sara threw the two Poké Balls ahead of her, releasing both Eevee and Butterfree on one of the landings where the staircase switched back on itself. As Tyler and Sara reached the landing and turned to climb the next set of stairs, they followed, Eevee hoping up the large steps as fast as she could and Butterfree simply flying ahead of the pack to scan the way ahead.

It only took them about thirty seconds to climb all of the stairs and for Tyler to kick open the door to the floor directly below the top level, even though it was already ajar. As Sara rolled her eyes once again, Tyler rolled into the hallway headfirst and landed in a crouch, holding his right hand out with his pointer and middle fingers pointing outward in a bad imitation of a gun.

"What do you think you're doing now?" Sara asked as she and her Pokémon entered the hallway behind him, all of them staring at Tyler.

Tyler turned his head and smiled at Sara. "Well, don't people always roll into a hallway in movies and stuff? Especially when they're on secret missions or are trying to be sneaky."

"But we're not in a movie," Sara pointed out, shaking her head. "Also, aren't we supposed to be looking for that screaming girl? There's no time to be fooling around trying to be like an action hero."

"Geeze, you're no fun at all." Still smiling, Tyler stood up and walked over to the first doorway, throwing it open so he could look inside. Sara followed his lead and quickly looked in another room, scanning for anything out of order.

Following the same procedure, each Trainer would open a door in the hall and look into the room inside for Rotom or the screaming girl. Halfway down the hall, however, there was a loud bang from above them, followed by a second scream and a cry of "Quuuuuuiiiiii!"

"Quilava!" Tyler shouted, adding to the noise in the building. Not even bothering to glance at Sara, he ran back down the hallway to the stairwell and began climbing, taking three stairs at a time.

"Hey, wait up Tyler!" Sara called after him, but to no avail. Sighing, she looked over at Eevee and Butterfree, who were gazing at her with expressions of confusion and worry etched on their faces. "Come on you guys, let's go after him. After all, I think he could use our help."

Her Pokémon both gave a nod of approval, and the three of them raced down the hallway, trying to catch up with their fleeing friend.

* * *

Tyler burst onto the top floor hallway, not even caring at this point at trying to be sneaky. Taking a quick scan of his surroundings he saw that the upper floor was much fancier than the floors below it. In fact, it didn't even have a hallway. The door from the stairs led straight into a giant open room that functioned as a waiting area in the front complete with padded leather sofas and a working area with multiple desks stationed behind a large counter. Besides the doors to the bathroom and for a couple of elevators, the only other doors on this florr were three large, red wooden rectangles in the very back of the room. As he got closer to them, Tyler saw that these three doors were actually decorated fairly lavishly, complete with a golden plaque stating the name of a person and a fancy looking doorknob.

The main difference between the three doors, however, was that the one in the center had been blown off of its hinges, and lay smoldering in two pieces on a nearby office desk. Not only that, but the empty doorway and the area around it was covered in soot, most likely due to a fire from his Quilava.

Concern for his Pokémon flooded through his body, blocking out all other thoughts. Charging straight ahead, Tyler leaped over the counter and ran straight for the open doorway, not even bothering to hide his presence. In fact, he literally barreled his way into the open room, knocking over a small bookshelf in his haste.

Inside, the office was a wreck. Papers and glass were scattered all over the floor, and multiple burn and scorch marks decorated the walls and ceiling. All of the furniture was also badly damage and some were even overturned, as in the case of two other larger bookshelves. Tyler barely noticed any of this, however, as his eyes went straight towards the fried form of his Quilava, who was lying on the cranberry red carpet, unconscious.

"Quilava!" Tyler shouted again, bounding over to his fallen Pokémon and scooping him up in his arms. The long, weasel like creature hung limply in his arms, barely breathing. The blue fur that covered the top part of his body was singed while the cream colored fur that covered his belly, arms, legs, and face was matted and dirty.

A quiet chuckle suddenly echoed throughout the room, causing Tyler to spin around and almost loose his hold on Quilava. Gazing around the room, Tyler's eye caught a small, blue device sitting on a large wooden desk that took up a large majority of the office. Going over to investigate it, his foot accidentally bumped into the base of a lamp that was missing its shade and was sitting on the floor, causing it to fall over and shatter the light bulb.

As he quickly stepped over the mess he had made on the floor, Tyler's ears suddenly caught what sounded like a quiet whining noise coming from the desk. His curiosity piqued, he walked around to the back of the wooden stand, only to jump back in surprise when he almost stepped on a short, very fat middle-aged man. His brown suit was torn and wrinkled, and he looked absolutely terrified about something as he huddled partially in the rectangular space in the desk that usually was home to a person's feet.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Tyler asked, nudging the man with his foot. In response, the man slowly raised one large, pudgy finger towards the ceiling, his eyes wide with terror. Carefully, Tyler lifted his head to gaze at what the shaking man was trying to show him. There, hovering right below the ceiling was his small, orange Rotom, who was smirking down at the two humans below. Tyler's eyes locked with Rotom's with just a brief second, his filled with frustration and anger and Rotom's filled with mischief and happiness.

A moment later, Rotom sprang at his head.

"Eevee, Helping Hand, Butterfree, let loose a Confusion!" a familiar voice cried from the doorway. A split second later a look of pain crossed Rotom's face as he was blasted into the wall by a powerful psychic energy. Turning his head, Tyler saw Sara standing in the doorway with her arms crossed across her chest, Eevee and Butterfree in fighting stances next to her. "You alright over there Tyler?" she asked.

"Uh…yeah," Tyler said, giving her a small smile, "but Quilava's been hurt pretty badly. I think Rotom snuck up on him and did a good deal of damage to him that way."

As the two humans talked, Rotom struggled against the psychic bonds that had been placed on him, trying to get free. After a few more seconds of struggling, an idea suddenly popped into his little head. Smirking, he quickly let his body become intangible, letting him slide through the wall and out of Butterfree's mental grasp. With a chuckle he emerged from the ceiling a few seconds later, his body sparking with electricity as he shot a Thundershock at Butterfree. Not seeing Rotom emerge, Butterfree was hit by the electric bolt, making him cry out in pain as he almost lost control of his flying.

"We'll talk later," Sara said, turning her attention back to Rotom. "Eevee, distract that Rotom with a Growl."

Leaping forward immediately, Eevee lowered herself in a deep crouch and growled about as menacingly as she could manage, all the while glaring at Rotom. In response, Rotom blinked once, twice, not really seeming to understand what he was seeing. Finally, after a few seconds of silence, he burst out in hysterical laughter, tears even coming to his eyes. Annoyed, Eevee Growled again, which only caused Rotom to laugh even harder, the structure of his body actually beginning to shift as the plasma was disrupted by the vibrations.

"Now use Confusion while he's distracted Butterfree!"

"Free!" Butterfree shouted as he let loose his revenge. Rotom was so busy laughing at Eevee that he didn't even notice the psychic bonds wrap around him until it was too late. Gasping in shock as the mental attack began to compress his body, Rotom began struggling in midair against the attack, trying to break free somehow like before.

"Great job Butterfree. Tyler, I think now might be a good time to end this, don't you agree?" Sara asked, glancing over at Rotom's Trainer.

"Oh, yeah…uh, right!" Tyler said as he began rummaging around his belt and his pockets for Rotom's Poké Ball. After a few seconds of frantic searching, he sighed with relief when he pulled the tiny red and white sphere out of his pocket. "Alrighty then, get back in here Rotom."

Lifting the orb into the air, Tyler carefully took a few seconds to aim at the Plasma Pokémon, making sure that his recall wouldn't miss the target.

As the red beam of light began to traverse its way across the room, the wall facing the outside buckled and exploded, knocking everyone in the room back showering the room with dust and debris.

A happy cry of "Meta!" suddenly filled the room, and a few seconds later, Tyler found himself being lifted out from underneath a pile of rubble. Blinking a few times to get the grime out of his eyes, Tyler smiled when he recognized his starter Pokémon happily staring at him while holding him in the air with one of his giant metallic claws.

"I don't know about you guys, but I've had enough bursting through walls hundreds of feet in the air today to last me a lifetime," a new voice groaned from somewhere within the dust cloud.

"Ugh, is that you Derek?" Sara's voice asked from somewhere to Tyler's left. "Because if it is you, then I am going to kill you."

"Someone's in a bad mood," a feminine voice taunted through a groan. "Oh god, it's going to take forever to get this dirt out of my clothes."

"What the…? Lilly? What in the world are you doing here?" Sara asked, both shocked and annoyed at the same time.

"Rota!" Rotom cried, followed by the same shriek that had led Sara and Tyler to the room in the first place.

"Get it away! Get it away!"

"I'm so confused," Tyler mumbled, shaking his head. "Metang, blow this dust away with a Confusion attack, would ya?"

"Tang!" Metang cried as he blasted the obscuring particles away with a burst of energy from his mind. It was a bit strong, however, as one of the bookcases directly opposite him crumbled into a pile of splintered wood and glass, among other unidentifiable things.

His vision now free from the obscuring dust, Tyler glanced quickly around the room to take in his surroundings. He and Metang were near the center of the wreckage, hovering in the air. Sara was on his left, along with her two Pokémon. Eevee's tail had been caught under a rock, and she was trying with all her might to free herself, while Butterfree was trapped underneath a pile of rocks, the edge of his wing barely sticking out of the bottom of the pile to show he was there. Meanwhile, four new people had entered through Metang's hole in the wall, which gave an excellent view of the city. Derek and Hunter were among these people, as were a girl with blond hair and an older teenager who looked like he worked out a lot.

And there, in the left-hand corner of the room, sat the fat guy with the remains of his desk that he had been trying to hide under before. Rotom was flying and zooming around him, smirking to himself as he terrified the poor man, who was screaming and shouting, "Get it away!" over and over again.

Even with the seriousness of the situation, Tyler couldn't stop a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth at the scene in front of him. "Guess we better help him, eh Metang? Try another Confusion."

With a grunt, Metang launched another mental assault, this time aiming for his own rouge teammate. However, Rotom wasn't going to fall for the same trick yet again, and he defiantly zipped his way into one of the walls of the building. The Confusion attack slammed into the corner instead, carving another large hole into the office and making the man below shriek in a very high-pitched voice.

"Whoops," Tyler mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Idiot," Lilly grumbled. "If you keep on attacking like that, you're going to bring the roof down, with us still under it."

Giggling, Rotom reappeared from the safety of the wall, and made a b-line towards Metang.

"Take it out with Metal Claw! And, uh, try not to destroy anything you shouldn't!"

Rolling his eyes, Metang immediately swung one giant, metallic arm in front of him, the three claws attached on the end glowing silver. It wasn't the best move, however, as Rotom easily zipped upwards, dodging the attack with ease. Grunting, Metang swung his other arm around, only meeting with similar results as Rotom ducked, allowing the arm to pass over him. As the arm finally cleared his head, Rotom stuck his tongue out at Metang, clearly trying to anger him.

His tactic clearly worked, as Metang narrowed his two red eyes and began swinging his arms wildly, just trying to hit the annoying little pest. Rotom proved to be too fast though, as he dodged every single swing with ease, laughing all the way. Eventually, after dodging a double arm thrust from Metang, Rotom unexpectedly zoomed forward and landed on Metang's pointy nose.

"Rota," he said happily, waving one of his little lightning bolt arms at the Iron Claw Pokémon. Metang glared back at the Plasma Pokémon, slowly raising one of his arms in preparation to strike.

With a booming cry of "Meta!" Metang brought his steel arm down in an attempt to crush the annoying Electric and Ghost-type on his nose.

But Rotom was no longer there. A few moments before the plated arm came down, Rotom zipped to the side, completely dodging the attack. Seeing this too late, Metang barely had a half a second to comprehend what he saw before his arm came crashing down on his own face, sending a shutter of pain rippling though his body as the thick arm dented his armor.

"Metang!" Tyler cried as he saw his Pokémon collapse in a big heap on the floor. Rotom, meanwhile, was laughing as hard as ever, apparently finding the whole situation highly amusing. The laughing was abruptly cut off, however, when a stream of blue and orange flames and a blot of electricity came out of nowhere and struck his side, sending him flying.

"Good job Elekid, Dratini."

Looking over to his right where the two attacks had come from, Tyler saw the muscular teen that had come with his Metang stood with two Pokémon, who were both glaring at the stunned Rotom currently lying on the floor.

"You know," the Brayden said, glancing over at Tyler, "you may want to recall that thing while it's stunned. There's no need for this battle to go on any longer than it needs to."

"It would have been over by now if you guys hadn't come flying through that wall," Sara grumbled quietly while she worked to free her Eevee from the wreckage.

"Uh, yeah, right," Tyler mumbled, reaching for Rotom's Poké Ball at his belt. To his surprise, he couldn't find the little sphere, and suddenly remembered that he had the ball before the wall had caved in, but he didn't recall having it in his hand when Metang picked him up.

"That's not good," he said, falling to the floor and beginning to look among the wreckage for the container.

"What are you doing?" the Brayden shouted. "Hurry up and recall that thing while you can!"

"I would if I could! I lost Rotom's Poké Ball somewhere when Metang and you guys came crashing in!"

"Oh, well that's just great," Lilly grumbled, rolling her eyes. "You couldn't hold on to the one thing that has a chance of stopping that Rotom without having to knock it out?"

Meanwhile, Rotom stirred on the ground and groaned quietly to himself. Summoning his strength, he sat up and shook his head, trying to get his vision to focus.

"Bi bi," Braydon's Elekid growled, getting the attention of the squabbling humans.

"Just hurry up and find that Poké Ball," Braydon said. "We'll hold Rotom off. Right guys?"

"Sure," Derek said, grabbing a ball from his belt. "Cyndaquil, help us out!"

Lilly sighed. "I just want to get this over with so I can take a nice, long nap. Chikorita, Pichu, get out here and kick that stupid Rotom's butt."

The three Pokémon were released in a flash of light, and with the help of Elekid and Dratini, surrounded the recovering Plasma Pokémon. Rotom, meanwhile, merely smirked at the display, not fazed in the slightest.

Giving a sideways glance at his companions, Brayden asked, "You going to help us out Hunter?"

Hunter gave an apologetic smile and shook his head. "Mankey's the only Pokémon I've got that's still fit for battle, and sending him out would be suicide." Looking around, he noticed Sara was still busy trying to get the giant chunk of plaster off of Eevee's tail. "I'll go help Sara," he said, and before anyone could say anything against him, he ran off to assist her.

"Now then, use Thundershock and Dragon Rage!" Braydon shouted, pointing one large finger at the now hovering Rotom.

"Pichu, use your own Thundershock, and go ahead and hit him with a Razor Leaf Chikorita," Lily said, crossing her arms.

"Cyndaquil! Use…" Derek began before pausing, remembering that it took a little while for Cyndaquil to warm up. "Uh…just run around in circles to try to get your fire going!"

Cyndaquil looked back at Derek, raising a single eyebrow, but still did what he said, and began running around and around, trying to get warmed up so he could activate his flame. Meanwhile, the other four Pokémon set about on readying their respective attack, all of their eyes trained on Rotom. About a second later, each of them gave a loud shout, and unleashed a barrage of attacks.

Both Elekid and Pichu both unleashed a bolt of yellow electricity, each of them arcing through the air in a direct line towards Rotom. Next to Elekid, Dratini let loose a spray of blue and orange flames from his maw, and finally, Chikorita swung the top leaf on her head in a circle, and unleashed a flurry of surprisingly sharp leaves at her opponent.

In the midst of it all, with four attacks coming at him from all angles, Rotom just hovered there, smirking. Almost mockingly he simply floated higher in the air, allowing all four attacks to go under him and each hit one of their fellow Pokémon. Both Dratini and Chikorita cried out in discomfort as the electricity from the Thundershocks passed through their bodies, while Elekid had his skin sliced multiple times by sharp leaves from the Razor Leaf and Pichu was completely enveloped in flames.

"Don't let him do that to you guys! Dratini, snag him with a Twister."

"Dra," Dratini cried in response. Opening his maw once again, this time a swirling gale of wind came flying out, honing in on Rotom. With an annoyed "tch," Rotom countered the Twister by unleashing a blast of electricity, stopping the attack in its tracks.

"Hit him with a Razor Leaf while his back is turned Chikorita!"

"Chika!" Chikorita shouted as she whipped the leaf on her head in a circle, unleashing a flurry of leaves at the end of the arc. Rotom simply rolled his eyes and faded out, dodging the attacks easily. He then reappeared next to the startled Grass-type and sent a multicolored ball of energy at her. The orb simply popped in front of Chikorita's face, putting her in a daze.

"A Confuse Ray," Lily grumbled. "Pichu, Thunder Punch it."

Pichu immediately leaped forward, her tiny fist crackling with electricity. Swinging wildly at Rotom, she grinned when she felt her fist connect with soft flesh. The only problem was, the soft flesh that she hit that she thought belonged to Rotom actually belonged to Chikorita, who groaned and crumpled on the ground, sparks covering her body. Above them, Rotom began chuckling to himself, amused by the proceedings below him.

"No! Chikorita!"

"Nothing's working!" Brayden grumbled. "We need to find a way to slow it down… Elekid, try a Thundershock, and keep it up until you hit that darn thing."

Waving his arms in a windmill-like pattern, Elekid began generating electricity in his two plug-like extensions at the top of his head. With a cry, he launched his attack, which headed straight for the floating Rotom. Just like the attacks before, Rotom simply dodged it, this time by sidestepping to the right. Grunting, Elekid adjusted his aim, but Rotom proved to be elusive, zooming this way and that in order to dodge all of Elekid's attacks. Eventually he flew past Cyndaquil, who was still running around in circles, and the Electric attack struck him, taking the Fire-type by surprise.

Angry about being attacked, Cyndaquil's back immediately burst into flame, and he launched an Ember attack in the direction the Thundershock had come from. Elekid hissed as the tiny fireballs seared his skin, crossing his arms in front of his body to try to shield himself a bit.

"Cyndaquil, stop it!" Derek shouted.

Hearing his Trainer's command, Cyndaquil stopped his attack, and, seeing what he had accidentally done, shot an apologetic look over at Elekid. Rotom, however, found the whole ordeal amusing, and gave his trademark laugh. It was at that moment, however, when a bright beam of red light passed through him. Out of nowhere, a Hoothoot bravely flew forward and slammed into Rotom, knocking him out of the air.

"Hey, who said you guys could have a party without me?" a voice shouted from the doorway of the building. Everyone, Pokémon and human alike, all turned at once to the new arrival to the scene. There, in the doorway, stood Blayze with his arms crossed and a grin on his face.

"Blayze?" Sara, Derek, and Lily all shouted at once. Then, Sara asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I have absolutely no idea," Blayze replied. "All I know is that my Hoothoot suddenly flew off without me, and I just spent the last half hour or so running after him, and somehow we ended up here. Now the next question is, what are you guys doing here?"

While they were talking, Rotom grunted and picked himself off the ground, glaring at the Hoothoot. With a growl he blasted the annoying owl with his own bolt of electricity. Hoothoot cried out in pain as the currents pulsed through his body, and it took all that he had to just stay in the air.

Seeing what was happening, Blayze said, "Talk later, battle now. By the way, that Foresight Hoothoot used just now allows moves that don't normally affect Ghost-types to work, which means you can hit him with Normal and Fighting-type moves now. Anywho, Hoothoot, launch Confusion now!"

Diving towards his opponent, Hoothoot's eyes began to glow blue, and Rotom was slammed back into the ground by the power of the Owl Pokémon's mind.

"How about we help them out? Dratini, tie that Rotom up with a Bind," Brayden said, a smile on his face as the battle turned in their favor. His Dratini sprang forward and wrapped his long, serpentine body around Rotom's smaller body, crushing it. This didn't last long though, as Rotom used another Thundershock in retaliation, sending a blast of electricity pulsating through Dratini's body. The Dragon-type cried out in pain from the attack, and quickly let his pray go, who quickly zoomed up into the air.

Meanwhile, Sara, Hunter, and his Mankey had finally lifted the piece of plaster off of Eevee's tail, and the four of them began walking over to the rest of the group to see if they could help out with.

"Pichu, distract it with a Charm so Chikorita can hit him with a Poison Powder," Lilly cried. As an afterthought, she added, "And would someone find that damn Poké Ball already?"

"I'm doing my best!" Tyler shot back, still on his hands and knees looking everywhere for the tiny sphere.

"Someone help him already," Brayden grumbled.

As the battle continued to rage, Pichu winked at Rotom and giggled. Rotom stared at the tiny mouse, confused at her sudden change in attitude. While he was distracted, Chikorita snuck up behind him and slapped his back with her leaf, releasing a cloud of poisonous spores. She smiled to herself as Rotom began coughing, before slamming her head against the ground, her confusion kicking in.

"Nice," Derek said. "Cyndaquil, Ember him!"

"Quil!" Cyndaquil shouted as he opened his mouth. A flurry of his tiny fireballs came rushing out, headed for the right target this time. Rotom, however, was ready for the attack, and blocked it with a blast of electricity.

Blayze rolled his eyes. "You've got to do better than that Derek. Hoothoot, swoop in for a Tackle while he has his back turned."

Hoothoot did exactly as his trainer ordered. While Rotom was busy dealing with Cyndaquil, he simply dove and crashed into the tiny orange being, breaking his concentration and sending him stumbling straight into the Ember attack.

"Uh, thanks," Derek mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

Blayze simply shrugged. "No prob. Say, how did this Rotom get here anyway?"

"Long story," Tyler replied as he, Sara, Hunter, and their Pokémon continued to search for Rotom's Poké Ball.

"Swift Elekid, and Dragon Rage Dratini," Brayden grumbled.

The two Pokémon stood side by side, and quickly launched each of their attacks, Elekid with a flurry of stars and Dratini with a stream of flames. The two attacks met in midair and combined, creating a swirling blast of multicolored, flaming stars. Rotom grinned and zipped to the side, allowing the attack to pass him. Unfortunately for him, the Swift attack turned in midair and slammed into Rotom's back, bringing a gasp of surprise from the Plasma Pokémon. The stars pummeled his body, slamming him into the ground.

"Wow," Lily said, impressed, "you really are a skilled Coordinator."

"Was there really ever any doubt?" Brayden replied, a small smile on his face. The smile was quickly replaced, however, with a frown. "Could you find that freaking Poké Ball already?"

"I'm going as fast as I- Hey!" Tyler cried. Smiling, he stood up and triumphantly held the ball above his head.

"Great, now let's get this over with," Lilly grumbled. "Pichu, distract it with Charm again."

Pichu jumped forward once again smiling and waving happily at Rotom. Rotom, however, growled and exhaled a gale of foul-smelling, purple wind. Pichu cried out in disgust as she was blown away, tumbling head over heels until she was finally stopped by a large piece of plaster.

"Hoothoot, grab him with a Confusion!" Blayze shouted.

Once again, Hoothoot swooped down towards the Rotom below him, his eyes glowing blue. A blue outline appeared around the Plasma Pokémon, freezing him in place despite his struggles.

"Now Tyler!" Brayden shouted.

Tyler nodded, enlarging the Poké Ball in his hand. "Right! Rotom, return!" he shouted as a red beam of light shot out of the orb. Rotom, finally immobile, had no chance at all of dodging this one, and the red beam of light sucked him inside the sphere, sealing the trouble maker inside.

A few seconds of silence followed, everyone slightly on edge still from the battle. Finally, Sara asked, "Is it over?"

Looking down at the Poké Ball in his hand, Tyler whispered, "Yeah, we finally got him back."

"Great," Lilly said, sinking to her knees. "Can we go take a break now? My feet are killing me."

Everyone laughed Lily's remark, even Lily herself. The laughing lasted a few minutes in total, all of them just relieved that the whole ordeal was over.

"Come on," Tyler said, grinning. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

**Oh man, thank goodness that's over. Another giant chapter that's over 8,000 words. That's more than last chapter, but ironically, it was about a page shorter. I really had to just bunker down and keep on slugging this one out until it finally was all done. But still, wow. Compared to the first couple of chapters, this one is 8 times as large word count wise. Kind of explains why updating has been really slow. And as always, I need to apologize for the delay on this one. It seems all I ever do is miss deadlines that I promise for when my chapters come out. So I'm sorry.**

**So, the Rotom was stopped. Took them long enough. This has to be the longest battle I've written where one Pokémon just refuses to faint or give up. Still, a lot of it was just the whole group running around looking for him, so…**

**And Blayze saves the day with his new Hoothoot! Where would we be without our spiky-haired friend? The world would be a sadder place, that's for sure. Or at least, Goldenrod City would have been terrorized by a Rotom for a longer period of time.**

**So, where do we go from here? Well truthfully, I really need to go back and start reediting some of the past chapters. They're…how should I say it…bad. Definitely not up to my standards nowadays. I think that's one of the big problems I have with this story at the present is the beginning. Every time I look at my less experienced writing I just shake my head and sigh, and it kind of stops me from wanting to continue on. Plus, there are a few problems I've discovered with some things that I need to fix for later chapters for various reasons. So you can see why I really need to go back and do some fixing. I can tell you though, that I'll keep on working on the next chapter, which will feature a Gym Battle. Oh, and the fat guy that screams like a girl will also be in the next chapter too. **

**Well, that's about it really. Expect some edited chapters to start going up soon, as well as the next chapter of TFP in a few weeks. And don't forget to review, yeah?**


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